Sixteen Years: An Outsiders Fanfiction
by BrokenLullabyox
Summary: After sixteen years of living a lie, Seth Colbury finds out that his mother Sandy has been lying to him all along about who his father was. In an attempt to make things better, she sends Seth off to Tulsa Oklahoma to find his father.
1. Chapter 1

**So here it is; one of the stories I brought in from my past account and under a different title. This is part of the Next Generation series I have, and just so you all know, they link back to this story alone. Once the second story of this comes in, all the characters from the other stories will be joined in this one. Ok so to prevent myself from babbling too much, have fun reading! :**

Dedication: To Gabby, For being a truly great friend,  and never turning your back on me.  
Note: I don't own the Outsiders or the characters, except my own.  
Chapter 1

I couldn't think that clearly in the class I was in. Equations stretched across the board in uneven twists and turns; my eyes again playing tricks on me. I was no good in math…or any other class in high school for that matter. I wanted to get out badly, but of course, Dad would never let me. I was stuck in hell until graduation.  "Seth Colbury. Please solve the equation on the board." My teacher lived to drive me nuts! She knew I was no good in every subject known to man, and here she is asking me to solve a problem in front of everyone.   
"No."   
"Principal's office!" She chimed immediately.

The one person in the whole school that understood me had to be the principal. Going to his office was almost always a relief to me, although it was mainly because he was a family friend and hated to see my father yell at me. 

"Seth, you know you have to stop this behavior. It's not good for your family name for one, and you know your father will not like it when I tell him that you've been acting up again." I sighed when the thought of my father came into my head. Most of the time, he was strict, and always wanted things done his way, and no other. It killed me whenever my mother disagreed with him, because he always yelled at her. My little brother was always scared of him, and no child at his age (he is three) should be afraid of their father.   
"Yeah, I know," I said quietly. "I just..I don't like to be asked questions, and that's all my teachers ask. Questions! All the time, there is never a break. I just wish I had a father that understood what I was going through. I never wanted one that wants to teach a family business. It drives me insane!"  "Calm down Seth. Now. Your father is coming to pick you up. You really shouldn't have yelled at Ms. Dumar on the last period of the day." Just as he said this, my father stormed into the room, and held me by the ear.   
"Misbehaving again, are we? Thank you for calling me down here. Seth Colbury, your grounded for a month." I knew that was coming…

"Mom, I want to drop out," I said in a low voice. My mother looked at me with wide eyes as she got up from her chair. She never liked it when Dad butted into our conversations. She closed the door and sat back down in her chair.   
"Are you sure this is what you want to do Seth?" I could tell by the truth in her eyes that she wanted what was best for me. I nodded slowly. She sighed, almost in relief. "Well, at least you came to me when your father wasn't around. Well, I guess I approve and I'll let your principal know tomorrow." She got up from her seat and locked the door. "I'll also let Conner know you'll be working for him everyday, we'll have to tell you father something for the time being."   
"Who is Conner?" I asked.   
"He's the man who works at the gas station across town. He's looking to hire people who can work a full day. He's also a family friend." As she said this, the door unlocked and my father came in. His eyes read distrust, and he flared his anger at my mother. In an instant, his hand came at a quickened pace, and slapped my mother across the face. She stared at him in disbelief, her hand reaching up to her red cheek. 

"You are staying in school!" he snapped at me. I felt anger rush through my veins, and all I could think was that the plan Mom and I had was over. I couldn't even help myself when I yelled back.   
"I am not!" I yelled. "You can't keep me in school! I don't want to take over the family business, and I don't want to listen to you freaking mouth anymore. Stay away from me, and treat Mom with respect!" I didn't help matters much because he just swung at me, and I hit the wall behind me. My head throbbed in pain as he left the room, and my mother came to my side. 

"Seth! Are you okay?" she asked. I nodded, almost wanting to get right back up and punch him till he begs for mercy. "I knew keeping you from him was a horrible idea. I knew I should have stayed." she was in tears at this moment in time, and I looked at her.   
"What are you talking about?" I asked. She tried to stop crying as she looked me in the eyes. "He's not your father."

I couldn't describe the feeling that swept through me. It felt like loneliness and distrust against my own family took me over. I never felt anything like this before, and my mom seemed to see this. She opened her mouth, about to say something, but she closed it and sighed.   
"Why didn't you ever tell me? I thought you of all people would have!" My arm smacked everything off the table and onto the floor in one big crash. Plates and cups shattered all over the floor, as Mom just sat there crying. I really had nothing to say, so I left and went up to my room for the night.

I don't think I ever fell asleep that night. I was constantly trying to let my mind wander into sleep, but there I was, laying awake. I was concentrating hard that I didn't notice the small figure crawling up beside me.   
"Seth?" It was my little brother Jamie. He was clutching onto his blue blanket in fear, tears poured out of his eyes.   
"Monster trying to get you again?" I asked. He didn't respond to my question, all he did was lock his arms around me. "Just sleep in here tonight." He nodded and laid down, still holding onto my arm for security. I never wanted my brother to be hurt, he was the only one who could ever make me feel better about anything. As soon as he fell asleep, I got up and went down to the kitchen. I felt bad leaving Jamie in the room by himself, but I was thirsty.

Going down to the kitchen, I looked into my mother's study. She cleaned up the mess of course, (She hated when the house was a mess) but there was a box on the desk, opened up. On the sides in marker it read, "Tulsa Memories." It was weird, my mother had said once before that she had always lived in Florida.  
Had she lied about that too?  
I sat down in her chair, and looked at her things. Inside the box laid letter, a ring, and pictures too. I began to read one of the letters.

_Sandy,  
Please come back! My life is not the same without you. I miss your smile, the way you laugh, everything. I wish you would answer at least one of my letters. I'm begging you to write me! It feels as if my life is over when I'm not with you. My brothers tell me everyday that I should get over you. I always tried Sandy, but it never works. Please come back because I still love you.  
-Sodapop Curtis_

I blinked and then re-read the letter several times.   
"Sodapop Curtis." My mother's voice broke into my thoughts. I quickly put the letter down knowing that I had no right looking through her stuff, although a part of me was telling me that I did.   
"What about him? I really don't care about one of your old relationships. In fact since you kept that secret from me you can just go to hel-"  
"He's your father," she said calmly, her eyes averting up to me. "He doesn't know either." I never knew my family could have so many secrets hidden in the dark closet, the one I was never allowed in to. She grabbed the box from the desk and pulled out a ring strung around a chain. She took it off the chain, and took my hand, putting the ring around my finger.

"I realize now that I can't keep you from him, and can't keep him away from you. I want you to go to the airport, I'll drive you, and get a plane ticket to Tulsa, Oklahoma. From there, I want you to make your way to Will Rogers High School and then go straight into a lot with houses. Go to door number thirteen, and ask for Mr. Witman." Her eyes showed a glint of sadness in them. "He's your uncle, Seth. He is the only one related to me who didn't want me to leave. Anyway, you tell him who you are, and that I sent you. He'll show you where your real father lives." I couldn't believe she wanted me to find my father. I smiled, something I haven't done in a very long time.  
That morning, I waited for Dad to leave when my mom came up to the steps, and carried up two suitcases. We packed as fast as we could. Everything went into my bags, from shirts to cameras. As soon as I got dressed, we got into the car and took off for the airport. How long was she expecting me to stay?


	2. Chapter 2

**Ok another chapter updated and checked. Once again, I wrote this awhile ago, so it might not be really good like I intended it to be. Happy Reading!**

* * *

She brought me in and got me a ticket, also wiping away tears every time I looked at her, she sometimes even made me tear. I was watching my watch, and sighed when the time came for me to go. Mom cried into my shoulder.  
"I never knew this could hurt so much." she confessed. "My first son is leaving to see a boyfriend I haven't seen in over 10 years." she tried to put up enough courage to smile. "Call me if you need me. Just call, let it ring three times, and then start calling again. Be safe." she kissed my forehead and hugged me once last time, and then we separated.

The plane ride dragged on for a very long time, and I was alone. I couldn't sit still, getting more and more bored every second. I was also pretty nervous, I never heard of Sodapop Curtis until just recently, and the thought of meeting him scared me. What if he hated me, and tells me to get away from him? I also noticed that I never met my mother's brother before. Was I supposed to speak to him as "Uncle" something? Hell, I didn't even know his first name. Was I supposed to feel like an outsider looking into a window?  
"Excuse me?" a women about my age sat next to me. "Do you want some company?"  "Sure." I replied sitting up. "What's your name?"  "Linda." she answered. "And your name is Seth Colbury."   
"How'd you kn-"   
"It's on your carry-on bag." she laughed, her cheeks turning red. She ran her fingers through her blonde hair as she spoke again. "Where are you headed to?" She smiled.  "Tulsa. How about you? 'Girl like you must be going somewhere." She laughed again.   
"I'm going to see my Uncles and Father, and to think, they live in Tulsa too. I guess we're just two people going to the same place."   
"That's cool," I commented. "I'm going to see my father."

Our conversation dragged on for awhile. She was fourteen, and her younger brother was on the plane with her. Her father was going to pick her up at the airport, and since I had no ride, she was going to ask about bringing me to my uncle's house (Yes, I filled her in about my uncle too). Finally, the plane started to decline in the air, and then finally, landed on the ground. She smiled.  
"Follow me," she said. I nodded as we got off the plane, and walked over to a smiling man.   
"Good to see you again Linda," the man said. She hugged him tightly and then took my hand.   
"Uncle Pone, this is Seth. He doesn't have a ride. I was wondering if you could help him out." He nodded.   
"Sure. It's nice to meet you Seth. I'm Ponyboy." He extended his arm, and took his hand in mine with a firm grip. I smiled, and wondered if everyone had weird names in Tulsa.   
"Nice to meet you," I said, wondering if it was impolite to use his first name. He was after all, an adult.

I was thankful the car ride didn't take long. I held my luggage close next to me. Linda's younger brother George was playing with things in the front seat, like notepads and books.   
"You wrote another book Uncle Pone?" he asked in curiosity. Ponyboy nodded, as he turned onto another street. Linda smiled, and looked with interested eyes.   
"Is it a romance? Drama?"   
"More like real life actually. I just changed a few things." He smiled as he pulled up in front of a house. "This is the address you gave me Seth. I guess since Linda now knows where you are staying, she'll be visiting you." he smiled in the rear view mirror. I smiled back.   
"Maybe- I hope so," I said as I got out. I watched him drive away, and sighed before going to knock on the door.

Knock, knock. My hand made a pounding on the door and waited for a response. I was dreading the idea of someone coming to the door. My uncle lived here. I drilled this in my head, the fact that my mother never told me these things until just recently. Was my uncle going to like me? I had an urge to pace uncontrollably, but I stood solidly in place. The door opened sooner then planned, and I almost jumped out of my skin.   
"Who are you?" The man (or my uncle) opened the faded green door even wider, enough to see inside his house. He didn't look prepared to answer the door, dressed in a robe and slippers. His green eyes, that matched the door, gave a strange confused stare.   
"My Mom sent me," I replied. I could still hear my heart pounding from inside my ears. "Sandy Witman, or Colbury now. My name is Seth."   
"What? Sandy? I haven't heard from her in-"   
"16 years," I finished. "And now I'm face to face with my uncle, and I'm here to meet Sodapop Curtis."

"Seth, come on inside," He instructed, taking one of my bags. I took the other in my hand and closed the door behind me. I wanted to ask him if I could use his phone, to call Mom and tell her that I arrived safely in Tulsa, but I kept my mouth shut. My uncle looked like he wanted to say something. He led me into a living room with brown leather couches, and I sat in the one across from him.   
"I'm guessing you're well aware who Sodapop is then," I watched him nod as he take a cigarette and place it in his mouth.   
"Everyone in Tulsa, Oklahoma knows who he is. He is the only Curtis brother that hasn't married, the only one that couldn't handle a relationship with another women for more then three months," he took another drag out of his cigarette and then blew the smoke out carelessly.   
"I see," I responded, not knowing exactly what to say. What else can someone say after hearing the father he's never met doesn't have a family.  
"Mr. Witman, I was wondering if I could stay here for awhile. Mom said that I should ask you, but if you don't want me staying it's okay," A smile came to his face, as he leaned over and put a hand on my shoulder.   
"Call me Uncle Jim," he replied. "And as long as I have a house, my nephew is allowed in. It's good to meet you Seth. How is your mother doing anyway?"   
"You'd have to find out for yourself," I replied honestly. "Being with the jerk she's married to, she has some off days," He nodded and put the cigarette out, reaching the end. "Can I call her?"   
"Sure Seth. This way into the kitchen," He responded. I got up from the couch and followed him into the kitchen, where a phone was on it's cradle on the wall. I picked up the phone and dialed. It rang for awhile and after a long time of waiting I gave up trying and hung up. It seems strange, but Mom not answering worried me.

The first thing I did when I got to Tulsa was take a look around. I didn't exactly go far though, mainly because I was scared to leave the street. I had no idea where I would venture off to. I had to wait till Uncle Jim finished with his desk work to actually tour the city. I was sitting on the porch when Linda came over and came on the porch.  "So, you're in Tulsa for five hours, and you haven't left this house at all?"   
"Nope. I don't feel like getting lost in a place I've never been before," I smiled, feeling mostly like an idiot. She laughed.   
"It must be why people use maps," she said as Uncle Jim came out, keys in hand.   
"Must be," I agreed. I turned my attention towards him, and Linda coward behind me a little.  "Don't worry, it's just my uncle." I said. "I'm gonna have to go; I'm meeting my dad." She nodded.   
"Good luck."   
"Thanks."

So, Uncle Jim drove me to Sodapop Curtis' house, and I can honestly say, I was scared out of my mind. I gripped onto the seat belt tightly, my knuckles turning white. He stopped the car in front of a beat up looking apartment, and looked at me.  
"Here we are," he said. "Call me when you're ready to come home."

"Ok, thanks Uncle Jim," I replied once I was out the door. He nodded and drove off, leaving me with the apartment staring at me. I hesitantly made my way towards the front door, and knocked, only to have a voice come up from behind me. "Can I help you?" I froze in place as I gulped and turned around. The man standing in front of me looked at me with curiosity in his brown eyes. He was wearing a hotel uniform. Was this Sodapop?  
"Uhh, yea sure. I'm looking for the person that lives here."  
"You found me." He looked down at the ground and then back up. "Are you working for them people that have been naggin' me 'bout my bills? You can just tell 'em that I'm workin' on payin' 'em."  
"Oh no," I replied, trying to calm down the pounding thud-thud-thud I heard in my ears. "No, I don't really work for anyone. My name is Seth, Seth Colbury. My mother sent me here." He looked confused, and then took the keys from his pocket.  
"Let's talk inside," he said. "It'll be better, and I'll understand better if I'm sitting down." He smiled as I moved out of the way letting him get by to open the door. A dog greeted him as he put his coat on the hook.  
"Your Sodapop Curtis, right?" I wanted to make sure that I wasn't taking up any unneeded time. He nodded. I guess I wasn't.  
"What do you drink?" he asked. My eyes popped open.  
"You're gonna let a 16 year old drink?" He shook his head, laughing hysterically.  
"No, no, no. I mean soda or sumthin'. I don't drink alcohol." He chuckled a little more before I answered, "Anything is fine."  
We got settled into the small family room, the yellow lab sitting at his feet. His couch was much more comfortable then Uncle Jim's, and he made me feel more at home then I ever felt in my life. Was meeting him supposed to be like this.  
"So tell me, Seth is it?"  
"Yes Sir," I answered. He smiled before continuing.  
"Why did your mother send you here? I never met any women with the last name of Colbury, or is Colbury her last name after she got married?" He put his cup down on the coffee table as he leaned back on the couch, his arms folding against his chair, relaxed, much like how he talked and did things too. It was a lot different then what I was used to. I could never have talks like this with the man I used to call my father. I didn't know how to answer his question. I couldn't just come out with, "I'm your son," or something stupid like that. I was worried he would react differently then he was now, and it wasn't something I was prepared for.  
"I don't know yet. The phone connection dropped before I could ask. I'm sorry." I felt bad for lying to him. "I'll call her back later though." He gave me look, one that told me he knew I was lying.  
"You're a horrible liar Seth. Is it something bad?" I gulped, the uncomfortable feeling coming back to me.  
"Well. I don't know. It might be to you, but to me, it's not." I stood up and headed for the door. "I'll just leave now, and leave you to whatever you were going to do. You don't need to know me, and I don't think you want to either." I looked down at my feet as Sodapop stood up.  
"Seth, how would you know? You just met me after all."  
"Because we are already look alike, we might think and act the same way. If I'm correct, then, well, I would hate me too if I were you." His eyebrows furrowed in confusion.  
"I don't want you to judge me," he replied. I sighed as I stepped outside.  
"I can't tell you, and I should have realized it before I came. Even if I were to tell you, it's the wrong way to do it." And with that, I closed the door behind me.


	3. Chapter 3

I was feeling horrible after meeting him. Horrible because now that I revealed there is indeed a secret, he'll want to know. Should Sodapop know? Would it kill him if he knew that Sandy wanted me to meet him. I snapped out of thinking as I went downstairs, and, for the first five minutes, I listened to the quiet snoring coming from Uncle Jim's room. I sat down at the card table in the kitchen when I glanced out the window. Linda was parking her bike near the mailbox. She walked quickly over to the door, and knocked. I wasn't really in the mood to see her, not in the mood for her to open up more of her life to me. From the moment she saw me through the window I knew that if I didn't let her in, I would appear rude.

I got up from the chair, stretching my arms and legs from the stiffness of sitting in the chair, and opened the door.  
"Seth Colbury! How dare you not tell me that Sodapop Curtis is your father!" I searched her face for anger, or distrust. I couldn't find it. Instead, she was grinning, her angel like face reflecting it's beauty on me. "That makes us cousins!" She was laughing her angelic laugh as she hugged me, a little too tightly.  
"Linda. What are you talking about?"  
"My father is Darrel Curtis, Soda's older brother. Uncle Soda went to my father's house yesterday, and told us everything! Why didn't you tell him though?"  
"Because Linda," I replied, close to a yawn. "How would you like it if you were him and your long lost son comes up to your front porch and tells you 'Hey, I'm your son. How do you feel about this.' I'll tell you Linda, if I was him, I would throw myself out of the house. I would be angry." I brought her into the green living room, allowing her to sit down. She looked like she was holding in a laugh.  
"Seth, he's nothing like that, not at all! He was mostly worried about you, and what you were keeping from him. I kept your secret though, cause I think you should be the one to tell him, not me. I already know who my father is," I sighed.  
"Linda, I'm starting to wish I didn't. I'm starting to wish that I was back in Florida, with my little brother, and my mom. I don't think I really mind having my step father yelling at me like he always does." My eyes averted back to her. "I want things to go back to when I didn't know anything about Sodapop Curtis."

The rest of the day dragged on. After Linda left, and Uncle Jim left for work, I sat around and watched TV. The TV didn't catch my attention though. In fact, all I could think about was getting off the couch and going to see Sodapop. If Linda was right, and he wasn't the way I thought he was, then maybe it wouldn't be so bad, and maybe my feelings of wanting to go back to Florida would stop. I grabbed my shoes, figuring I'd put them on later, and then left a note taped on the front door, so Uncle Jim would know where I was.

I figured the fastest way to get to Soda's house would be a bus. I dug through my pockets for some change and then put the money into the terminal. I took the first seat I could find as my heart pounded against my rib cage in an anxious wait. Houses and buildings and cars rushed past the window in an instant blur, and it seemed like a shorter amount of time to get to my father's house then it was when Uncle Jim drove.  
The house stared back at me again as I made my way up the front stoop. I was about to knock when Soda opened the door.

"Welcome back Seth" He said. "I saw you through the window, figured I beat you to the punch." He grinned, opening the door wider. "Would you like to come in?"  
"Sure," I replied. It wasn't like I could refuse him. We went into his living room and we both sat down.  
"Mr. Curtis, I need to ask you something," I started. "And you have to answer truthfully or I would have no other way to tell you the truth." He nodded.  
"I'm listening. Ask away."  
"Do you remember what was going on 16 years ago?"  
"It was 1965, Seth. No, I don't remember much, except that my brother got sick, and the Greasers won the rumble against the Socs. Why?"  
"You don't remember anything besides that?"  
"Anything else would be too personal, I'm sorry." His jaw tightened, as he looked down at his dog. "I just can't think about that time too much. That year…upsets me the most."  
"I know," I replied. "It was the year Sandy broke up with you." I watched as his eyes widened.  
"How do you know this?" He gulped. "How do you know so much about me?"

"Because," I began. "Sixteen years ago, Sandy got pregnant and left you. Sixteen years ago, she left for Florida and had a child. Do you get it? Sixteen years ago, Sandy had me! Can't you see this now." I breathed before continuing. "I'm your son, and Mom (calling Mom "Sandy" made me feel uncomfortable.) never told you." I watched his face jump into shock. He didn't move, didn't speak. For a second I was scared, thought he wasn't breathing. Finally, I had to get him to talk, to end the silence. "Mr. Curtis?" He still kept quiet, his jaw tightening again. I knew it. I shouldn't have listened to Linda. He hated me. I should have never come. "Look, I'm sorry she didn't tell you, and I'm sorrier you didn't find out sooner. I found out recently myself." I hoped that would get him to say something. "Please say something."  
"What is there to say?" He finally spoke. "Cause frankly, I've got nothing. I don't know how to feel about this. Should I feel happy, knowing that I've had a son hidden behind my back for 16 years of my life? Should I feel mad, mad that Sandy never told me, and lied to me saying that you weren't mine? Trust me Seth, you don't want to know what I have to say." I nodded, understanding what he meant.  
"Should I leave?" I figured he didn't want me there.  
"You can stay if you want."  
"Do you want me to stay?" I watched him shrug.  
"Why not? I've got 16 years to catch up on with my son." For the first time since I last saw him, a small, yet forced smile appeared on his face. I smiled back. For the first time, I felt like I belonged somewhere. For the longest time, I felt like a puzzle piece, one that didn't find the perfect fit, until just now.  
We talked a little over three hours. We must have lost track of time, filling him in on times I was on the soccer team, and when I became the big brother of Jamie. He even had stories to tell me! He told me about his family, and that my grandparents –it feels so weird to know I had another set of grandparents- died in a car crash when he was young.

"I can't believe I met my uncle already and didn't know about it." We both laughed at when I met Ponyboy Curtis, or Uncle Pony as I could now state him as, without even knowing him. Our laughter eased a little, and then I finally looked at him. "What should I call you anyway?"  
"Anything you like. You can call me Dad, or Soda until you're comfortable enough to call me Dad." I figured I should call him Soda to start off. I smiled, and then looked at the time. He did too, and then sighed.  
"I have to go to work," he sighed. "Where are you staying for now? I'll pick you up later, let you meet the family or something."  
"That would be great. I'll have to call Mom anyway. She's been hitting the roof about me being down here behind my step-father's back, and he'll be at work soon. That's the only safe time to call her." He had a look of confusion pasted on his face.  
"Why are you here behind his back?" He asked.  
"He would be pissed if he knew I was down here. He is sort of abusive towards my mother and I. She doesn't have a voice around him." As I said this, the telephone started ringing and Soda went over to answer the call.

"Hello?" He listened until he handed the phone to me. "It's your uncle." I took the phone from his hand and put it to my ear.  
"Hello?"  
"Seth! Your mother called. Your father took Jamie and left the house last night without her knowing. She's frantic! She hasn't seen or heard from them at all since last night!"


	4. Chapter 4

It had been around hours since Uncle Jim called. I couldn't get my mind off the fact that Jamie was gone. My little baby brother was somewhere unknown. Could James be hurting him? I wanted to just go back, and turn myself in, but would that be showing a weakness? No, James was obviously trying to get attention. I didn't call Mom, I wouldn't have known what to say if I did. In a weird way, I wanted to call Linda, because I had a feeling she would take the situation and most likely make it more bearable, but I didn't call her.

After Soda left for work, I lounged around the house. I guess since he just found out I was his son, and with Jamie being missing, he trusted me easily, and he let me stay in his house by myself. Tristan, his Yellow Lab, usually sat on the end of the couch as I skimmed through what was on TV. Nothing. Even the radio was playing crap I didn't listen to. At other times, I walked around the back yard, with Tristan at my side, hell we even played fetch. I just wasn't myself.  
"Why are you wearing Tristan out? He's a little too old for this kind of exercise." I turned around to see Linda standing on the back porch. She had her helmet in one hand and a pair of skates in another, but she had a pair of skates on and a helmet was on her head unbuckled. "However, we aren't." 

"Not today Linda," I replied. "I'm not in the mood." Tristan dropped the ball I threw for him to catch at my feet, and then laid down on the grass. Linda sat down with me afterward. "You need to get out of the house at least once today, that and, Dad wants you to come with us." I shot her a glance.  
"How did you even know I was here?"

"Because we called you're uncle and he said you were here, plus my dad wants to meet you."  
"Why? How does he know about me, unless?" I froze. "You didn't."   
"I did. He was going to find out anyway. Why are you so angry about it?" I shook my head.

"I'm not mad, I don't know. I guess I'm a little frustrated cause I did want it all to be a surprise, I wanted to see how happy Soda would get over the family just finding out about me, and Jamie is gone." I stood up again and Tristan followed my example. Linda got up quickly and hugged me, wrapping her angelic arms around me. In a way, she made me feel more important then I did myself. I think it's because she puts herself before everyone. "Hell, I'll go. Let me get Tristan back into the house." I tried putting on a fake smile, but it didn't work out so successfully, and I turned away to the door when I could see that she saw right through me.

When I was back in the house, I got the skates on, which were a little big, and then strapped the helmet on. Tristan watched me with a close eye, and I laughed. The look he gave me was priceless. I walked on the wheels, feeling the hard-wood floor in the kitchen beneath my feet. It made me feel uncomfortable, feeling more secure on the dark carpet in the living room. I opened the front door and let Tristan out first, and then I followed out after him, getting used to the cement and blacktop under my feet. I rolled up to Linda and her father, or my uncle.  
"Is it alright if these are a little big?" I asked curiously. Linda nodded, and then turned her attention toward her father.   
"Dad, this is Seth Colbury, Uncle Soda's son," she announced then turning over to me. "And Seth, this is my father Darrel Curtis, but you can just call him Uncle Darry." He smiled and extended his arm out. I took it, hesitating a little to get enough grip in my hand to shake his.   
"It's nice to meet you Seth," He said. "You look a lot like Sodapop, and Sandy."   
"Thanks," I replied.

Turns out, we spent the whole day together. Linda and Uncle Darry were a lot alike, except Linda was a lot more outspoken, and it looks as if Darry hadn't had fun in awhile, and this was paradise to him.   
"We'll have to take Seth back soon," Uncle Darry commented as we were skating back to his house. It looked, to say the least, older the dirt. We took off our skates on the front porch, and went inside. The inside looked much better then the outside did. When we walked in from the front door, the cluttered family room was there and open, and then the kitchen was off to the right.  
"Don't mind the mess, George loves to mess the place up, that and he didn't want to go to Uncle Pony's house. He's sort of, rebellious." Linda confessed. "He doesn't like coming here." I nodded and sat down on the couch as Linda went further back into the hallway and into one of the rooms. Uncle Darry sat in the reclining chair.   
"How long have you lived in this house?" I asked.   
"Since I was born. Sure, Ponyboy and Sodapop left, but I couldn't. This house always held a certain meaning to me. Everything happened in this house." He looked around the house as if remembering something.   
"What happened to Soda here?" I asked.   
"A lot of stuff. He sat right in there when he told our parents he could stay in school. And he had his first real heartbreak in this house, or outside the house at least. It's when your mother told him, well, that she was pregnant with you. It broke him. He wanted to marry her, and take care of you, but your mother refused." He paused and looked at me. "The rest you should ask him yourself. I gotta get you home."

I was in deep thought the whole ride back. One thing that I could never do in the car, was talk to someone, anyone. It didn't matter, it always felt awkward to me, and I guess Uncle Darry could see that. As soon as we got to Soda's house, Soda was waiting outside, a smile appeared on his face when I got out of the car. He was over there in a second.  
"Hey Darry."   
"Sodapop. What is this I hear about Two-Bit moving away? You seem to have kept in touch with him." Uncle Darry was out of the car by then, and I didn't notice when Linda got out as well. She laughed a little.  "Two-Bit moved because his wife got homesick. She hates Tulsa so much she begged Two-Bit to move to her hometown in Mooresville, North Carolina. Of all places to meet a girl, it had to be a good distance away," Soda shrugged a little. I looked at Linda.   
"Two-Bit?" I shifted in place. "Is he another uncle I don't know about?"   
"No," Linda replied. "Two-Bit is just an old family friend. Our parents have known him since they were kids. He and his wife have been moving back and forth with their three kids though, so this isn't news. It's just news that they are staying there for good." She sighed. "I do miss him though. Part of the reason for coming here was to see him." I nodded, understanding what she was saying, and I looked back at Soda and Uncle Darry. They were really hitting it off, so Linda and I went inside and played with Tristan.

One thing I noticed was that Tristan was good at tricks. Linda showed me many of them; high fives, high tens, balancing a treat on his nose and him not even moving an inch. Tristan was beyond amazing, in every shape and form, but then again, I was only beginning to see that Soda, no, my father, was one of the most amazing people I could meet. I never met anyone like him, someone who took one look at me and let me into his home, and his family, my family. Maybe it wouldn't be so hard as to call him 'Dad.'


	5. Chapter 5

Get your feet off the table," Linda scolded. "This isn't your house." George, who had half a cookie stuck into his mouth looked at her, and then slipped his feet from the table and onto the floor. We sat there in Uncle Jim's house, (although he wasn't home) and were watching television and fooling around. It was weird, knowing we were linked in more of a way we originally thought. "George!"   
"What!" 

"Stop getting crumbs on their couch." Linda gave him a stern look, signaling him to go and sit in the kitchen. Once he moved to where he was directed, Linda moved closer to me on the coach, and put on a small smile.  
"So tell me something."

"What?" I responded as she looked down at the ground, and then started playing with her blonde hair, twisting it around her finger.

"Are you happier since you told Uncle Soda you were his son?" I shrugged.

"I would be a hell of a lot happier if there was any news on Mom and Jamie." I sighed, remembering that it was only yesterday that the news of Jamie's disappearance, and as much as I tried putting it to the back of my mind, it kept re-emerging into my conscience.  
"You know, Uncle Soda told my about him, as well as you did on the plane. He seems like a really cool kid, one that can put himself together, and stick up for himself. I can see where he learns it from,"

"Who, me? No, I'm nothing like Jamie. Jamie knows when to shut his mouth, and loves James. He has Mom and James wrapped around his little finger, including me. No, Jamie is a better person then I am." The conversation seemed to drop then, but what I said was true. Finally, Linda leaned back on the couch, and sighed. "Do you think it'd would have been different if your mom, and Uncle Soda got married when they were teenagers?"

"They'd probably be divorced, and I'd be living with Sodapop. I think either way Mom would have met James and married him." And from there we talked more and more about what could have happened if Uncle Darry had more money to support his ex-wife, Linda and George and if Mom and Soda got married and raised me under one roof. We came to the conclusion that we would have most likely been friends since we were in diapers, and almost all our problems wouldn't exist. But with change comes consequence, with brought me to thinking that Mom and Soda would have fallen out of love anyway, and I would have been a different person because of it. Linda says that Uncle Darry would probably be too caught up in work, and trying to pay bills that her mother would have left him anyway. We realized there would be no way around faith, no matter how hard anyone tried.

From Uncle Jim's, we walked over to a close McDonalds and ordered dinner. Uncle Jim and Uncle Darry were working for the night and Linda and I figured that we could spend the night under the same roof and watch a few good movies on TV.  
"Are you sure George is okay at my uncles house alone?" I asked. Linda laughed and nodded.

"He's old enough to recognize a fist down his throat if everything isn't the same by the time we get home." she replied handing the cashier a couple dollars. She smiled her angelic smile at him as he gave back the change and handed me the food. "Plus Dad would kill him if he made a mess in someone else's house." We walked out the door and then began walking home when we looked at someone sitting on the side of the road, crying. Her brown hair was knotted and dirty, and her clothes weren't any better. It looked like she's been living on the road for a decent month or so.  
"Ma'm, you alright?" Linda asked, kneeling beside her.

"Life isn't all that simple anymore," she sobbed. "I lost my house, my money, everything!" she began to really start crying then, and Linda tried to talk her out of it, and hugged her every once in awhile.  
"What if I get you some money?" she asked. "And a decent meal of whatever I've got. I might even have some clothes for you too." The women's eyes lit up.

"I'll work for it first miss, I promise." Linda smiled and helped her off the side of the street. We continued walking toward, well, now Uncle Darry's house, and I mostly kept myself silent, not wanting to become a part of any conversation. I couldn't believe Linda though; just walking up to her and trying her hardest to make it better. We made it to the front porch and Linda ran inside and got her a pile full of clothes and food too. She even threw it some casserole that she made for her family last night. Once the woman left, Linda and I stood outside the house. I knew I was staring at her, probably in disbelief.  
"You are amazing," I said finally. "You just made someone a hell of a lot happier then they were."

"I look out for people like that," she said. "Ever since our cousin told us about what happened to her and her momma I've seen things in a different light." she opened up the gate and we started walking to Uncle Jim's. "Plus I take a look at myself if I were in that situation, and think, "What if I could have someone to help me."  
"I guess that's a cool way to look at it," I replied. We walked for about twenty minutes before walking in Uncle Jim's front door. The house was spotless, just like Linda said it'd be. George was sitting on the couch watching television quietly, and smiled widely when we came in, and screamed, "burgers!" before running to the table to grab his. Linda and I just laughed at him, before settling down with out burgers and watching what was on TV.

"Seth, wake up, your mom is on the phone," Uncle Jim whispered giving me the phone off the end-table. I rubbed the sleep out of my eyes, and grabbed the phone, muttering a small, "hello." into the phone.  
"Seth, I'm coming to Tulsa," she informed. I blinked and sat up straighter on the couch, careful not to hit Linda's head with my foot.

"Umm," I tried to think of what to say but nothing came out.

"I have the police looking for James, that until he shows his sorry ass in Florida, I'm not staying here." I never heard her really say anything with any sort of curse word before. I could tell she was mad, hurt, but not just about Jamie, but about something else.  
"So when are you coming?" I asked her quietly. "Are you hopping a plane today?"

"Well with everything I have to do, I should be there around five o'clock this afternoon. Will you wait for me at the airport?"

"Sure, I'll have Soda and Linda come too." Silence followed my last response, and I could hear my mother breathe out a long sigh. "Unless you don't want me to Mom."

"No, go ahead. I'll have to come face to face with him at some point or another, might as well be sooner then later. I'll see you at five. Love you baby." Then she hung up.

I decided I should start the morning, and went up to the guest room to take a shower, and brush my teeth. I knew Uncle Jim would be leaving for work soon so he could spend the evening with Mom later, but I had a feeling Soda would try to work when she came. He was going to be just a nervous as Mom sounded on the phone, and he'd most likely try rescheduling his hours at work. But then again, who was I to judge a man I met just two days before? Maybe he wanted to see her again...hell maybe he still loved her. I started to change into one of my red shirts with a pair of jeans when the phone rang, and I picked up.  
"Whitman residence," I spoke.

"Seth, it's Soda," he said into the phone. I sat down on the bed, and started to play with the white, spiral cord that hung from it. "Your uncle said your mother was coming to Tulsa."

"That's right," I said. "Do you think you can drive me there to meet up with her?" There was a slight hesitation.

"Sure."

"Good! I was thinking of asking Linda to come along too."

"That'd be alright." he said quietly. It was weird; he was never quiet before. I knew he was nervous but it didn't sound like he was nervous, but instead miserable, hurt, or overall, sad.  
"You don't have to if you don't want to, Soda. I can probrably get Uncle Darry or Ponyboy to drive me there too. You sure you want to?"

"I'm fine Seth. I'll pick you up at three thirty with Linda so we can stop somewhere, and then we'll pick...Sandy up." The hesitation in his voice made him sound like he was trying to calm himself down.  
"Okay. See you then." And then I hung up. I went downstairs to a sleeping Linda and George and sat at the card table in the kitchen for awhile, and looked around the small kitchen where there was hardly any walking space. On the wall was a family picture with Mom, and Uncle Jim had his arm draped around her shoulder. There were others with their parents when they got married, and when they were kids, but one picture stood out like no other; a picture of Mom when she was pregnant. I compared that one picture to the family one where she was smiling and happy, but this one was different. Aside from her hair trimmed short, and the big bulge in front of her that used to be me, the smile was gone, and the eyes we shared weren't glowing like in the family picture. What did my grandparents do to her? Did they force her out of the house, or was moving to Florida her choice? I never got the chance to ask. My eyes averted to another picture too, one with Soda, both of them happier then ever. Mom was in his arms, and she was happy. Did I ruin that for them? I remembered them talking to me over the phone, nervous, hurt, scared voices. Their unhappiness was caused by me, and I was surprised they never blamed me. I didn't realize a tear escape me eye as I looked, and I quickly wiped it away when Linda came walking into the kitchen.  
"Hey. Are you alright?"

"I guess so. I'm just realizing things for the first time. Do you want to meet my mom?" She smiled and hugged me.

"Of course I do! Is she coming here?" Her eyes sparkled with excitement.

"Yeah. Soda is taking us at three thirty to pick us up." Eight hours until she came, and I was already feeling like there was a mistake waiting to happen, almost like when I was born."


	6. Chapter 6

Ok I'm writing again! I just want to thank TheNightimeSky for reviewing and helping me better my writing : And now I'm working on being more descriptive (The one thing I have SO much trouble with..-sigh-) Ok so, here is the next chapter...

Chapter 6

I knew I'd have to deal with this sooner or later, but why? Why between my two parents who haven't seen each other in sixteen years. Soda was cracking his knuckles, nervous. Linda was sitting down next to him.  
"You wanna talk Uncle Soda?" she asked. "I can tell you tons about the teachers I hate, how loudly Seth snores-"

"Please don't!" I begged. I didn't even know I snored. Soda's looked up at me and then her and a small smile crawled on his face.

"No thanks Linda. You'll have to tell me about Seth and his snoring later though. I may want to buy him a muzzle." I glared at Linda then, and they both laughed at me. "Are you two distracting me from what's going on?"

"Of course Uncle Soda, I hate seeing you so...quiet." She kissed his cheek and then leaned on his shoulder. "It's very unlike you...being quiet. You of all people, besides Two-Bit, have something to say."  
"So do you," he told her and patted her on the head. She let out a high pitched giggle. She motioned for me to sit down with them, and I did.

"That's one thing he didn't inherit from you, you know; talking. He hardly does unless he has to."

"That's not true," I objected. The conversation headed into what I inherited from Soda, and I dropped out of it at some point or another. I checked the clock near the left hand side. It read five fifteen. Where was Mom? I slumped in my seat and absently started chewing on my nails. I was bored out of my mind.  
"Where is she? She said five o'clock," I started to circle around the bench. "Five o'clock is five o'clock, and she is never late to anything."

"Calm down Seth. Maybe she's looking for her luggage," Linda suggested, standing back up. "It's not like she wouldn't get on the plane like she said she would, and-"

"Seth!" I turned around quickly at the yell of my name. Over near the clock I was looking at earlier, Mom was standing there trying to lift her bags up. She brought more then I did; all in matching red suitcases. I walked over to her, and she hugged me tightly.  
"I missed you so much," she said into my shoulder. Her tears were seeping through my shirt, and she looked at me. "You're never leaving me for this long ever again." I hugged her back, and I could tell she didn't want to let go. Once we parted, I took three of her bags, and she took the only one she had left and we leaded over for the bench. Soda wasn't making eye contact.  
"Does he hate me?" she asked. I shook my head.

"No, he's nervous."

"Sixteen years," she acknowledged. I nodded as we made it to the bench and Linda stood up, Soda following her lead. For the first time since she was in range of his view, he looked right at her, his ears turning a light shade of red.  
"Sandy," he said, almost a sigh. She put on a quick smile which turned back to no expression at all as she sighed too and said, "Sodapop Curtis. It's been too long." I took a step back, Linda taking one of the heaviest bags. I knew we were both in an awkward position, watching the two of them. They stared at each other for awhile, and then looked at both Linda and I. I knew they wanted to be alone, and I started tugging Linda in the other direction.  
"So far so good," she breathed out. "How are you feeling?" I took a moment to thin about that question. In a way, looking at Mom and Soda talking with each other (or trying to). I smiled a little bit to myself.  
"For the first time in a long time; whole," I answered truthfully. "No matter how bad the communication is, my birth mother and father are together, at least for a short time. I never felt that around James when I thought he was my father, but with Soda it's different. He's everything I wanted in a father, a guy that could have a good laugh, and talk to me. And then Mom, she's just great altogether, and it's even better now that she can be herself without being in fear of getting hit. Who knows, maybe it's the start to a new beginning." Linda smiled, and hugged me tight. It was weird, everyone was hugging me today!  
"Maybe you're right. Maybe they'll fall in love again." I felt humor emerge in the pit of my stomach, and I couldn't help but let the laugh out.

"Yeah, right. Mom and Soda, getting back together after sixteen years of not speaking? I think not. I was really thinking more along the lines of Mom moving here so I could visit Soda whenever I wanted. It wouldn't be incredibly perfect, but it'd be better then moving back to Florida." Finally Mom and Soda caught up and we began to go to the car. Soda's car, a Mercury Topaz, stood in the parking lot right in the front. Mom's eyes widened.  
"What happened to the red truck you guys used to have?" she asked in curiosity, or in shock, I couldn't tell which.

"The Ford? It gave out after Ponyboy got his license," he unlocked the doors and then popped the trunk so we could get the bags in the back. Soda and Mom sat in the front seat, talking about the red truck Mom brought into the conversation, and Linda and I listened from the back seat. Soda mentioned two or three things that made Mom laugh, and finally she looked at Linda and smiled.  
"Oh. I'm sorry, do I know you?" she said turning to me. "Who's this?"

"Linda, Mom," I replied. "Uncle Darry's daughter." She turned around in her seat and extended her arm.

"I'm so sorry I didn't ask earlier Linda. I'm Sandy." Linda smiled as she took Mom's hand, and they shook firmly. "Firm gripped handshake; you must be a Curtis."

"Yes Ma'am," she said proudly, taking her hand as their parted from her handshake to move a lock of gold hair behind her ear. "So, where are you staying? With Uncle Soda? Seth? Uncle Darry?"

"Seth and his Uncle Jim; I asked my brother earlier and I'm getting Jim's old bedroom." She smiled to herself mostly. "It'll be like I'm a kid again."

"You need new couches," I stated, sitting on the brown leather one across from Mom. She was going through her luggage, taking out clothes and hair things. She was already moving on to the next suitcase. Uncle Jim sat in his red recliner, which rested on the outer left hand side of the couch I was on. "Why do I need new couches?"  
"Because these are uncomfortable and they smell old,"

"They smell like Momma and Daddy," Sandy said getting a red sweater from the suitcase's contents. "They don't smell old; just foul."

"Yes they do," I argued, fumbling around with one of the toys Mom brought to give herself hope of finding Jamie. It was fake car keys, all colored coded, and playing around with them made me miss him more. I sighed, remembering when Jamie used to want me to play with him, and I could always remember telling him, "no" or "I'm busy" and now that I think about it, I wish I could take it back. I wish James would be found already, so Jamie could be sent here. He'd be happy here.  
"Let's go out to a restaurant tonight, I'll buy," Uncle Jim stated. Mom stood up and started to reach into her jeans pocket when Uncle Jim grabbed her arm. "You're not going to pay a cent."  
"Are you sure?" she asked. He laughed, and slowly put his hand around her shoulder.

"Don't worry so much Sandy Lynn," he said, wording her middle name slowly. "It'll be a reunion of the two of us. It'll be fun." Sandy was smiling at him, and without looking to me she said, "Seth, go get dressed up." Well, this'll be a fun night. I don't think anything can go wrong from here. I smiled to myself as I climbed up the stairs, and went to go find the best I could get of dress clothes.


	7. Chapter 7

**Ok I updated yet again. It seems Seth has been attacking my subconscious lately, and I had to write another chapter. I put Angela Shepard into this chapter, and I hope I kept her in character as much as possible. I also threw in some That was Then, This is Now stuff :  
So, onto chapter 7. Enjoy! The next chapter will be a lot more exciting, I promise.  
**

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Chapter 7

I never realized how downhill things could go so quickly. One moment, everything is together, perfect, happy, but if your not careful, it could be ripped from you the next second. Here we were, Uncle Jim, Mom and I in the restaurant sitting in a nice private booth, laughing, and watching as Uncle Jim and Mom catching up on old times when a woman and man walked over to our table and looked at my mom, who looked away, and stared down at the table. They looked over at Uncle Jim, disgust on their face.  
"So Sandy; your back in Tulsa huh?" the women asked. "You should know we don't like tramps like you in our restaurant, and with your offspring." She spoke about my mother and I so harshly it made me feel lower then the ground. Who was this women to be insulting Mom and I, and she said the word 'offspring' so foully it made my stomach sick? I didn't even know this woman! "Nobody likes filth here."  
"She's not filth," Uncle Jim argued. "Don't talk about her like that. Nobody talks trashy about my sister." I could tell he was one of those people who could handle and win fights really easily. It made me wonder what he was like as a kid.  
"Jim, please. I don't want to start anything while I'm here," Mom sighed as she reached for a cigarette from Jim's coat pocket. Since when did she smoke? Her careful eyes were turning into something along the lines of rage and anger.  
"But you're here; things started. Go back to Florida, Sandy. No one wants you here,"

"Oh shut up Angela!" my mom finally snapped. "You don't know me now, nor did you then. Leave my son out of this too; he's none of your concern."

"Oh and who's the father of your son here then? I bet you don't even know."

"Sodapop," I interjected. "Can you just go now?" She stared at me, and I didn't blame her. I didn't talk once. She let out a small laugh before pushing the hair out of her face.  
"And how do you know that? Sandy could be lying to you-"

"My mom isn't a liar. Now leave; your only embarrassing yourself, and giving us something more to laugh about." Uncle Jim and Mom were looking at me now in amazement, along with this Angela person, but I had a lot bottled up that I had to say. She smirked.  
"Don't be a smart-mouth now," she said when she turned to Sandy. "And I wonder why he speaks like this to others in public, but then I look at you Sandy and remember that you aren't a real mother." She sniffled back a laugh. "No wonder." As a waited was walking by, Uncle Jim pulled him over.  
"I think we can take the check now please," he said. The waiter nodded and walked off, as Angela just smirked.

"Can't handle the heat Jim?" Angela asked, and she let out a laugh before walking away. Mom groaned and laid her head in her hand. I put my hand on her shoulder gingerly and with her other hand she took mine. The cigarette that she took from Jim's pocket was put in the ashtray, still slit, it's smoke still streaming from it.  
"I have to get out of this town; seems I'm not wanted anywhere," she stated. "Everywhere I go turns into disappointment and regret. If I'm in Florida, I'm alone and crying and wondering where my little baby boy could be. Then I come here for some relief and Angela Shepard comes to piss me off."  
"Don't worry about Angela," Uncle Jim said. "She's mostly mad because Ponyboy really told her off yesterday. She was dating Sodapop, that is, until he broke up with her. She started getting drunk then, and staying over Tim's house. Tim got aggravated and started some shit with Soda and then Ponyboy got in the middle of it, and said something about her not getting guys cause she gets her brothers involved. Just ask Bryon." There was a hint of humor in his eyes, and then he said, "He cut her hair a few years back."  
"A few? Seems pretty childish if you ask me,"  
"Ok so not a few years back." She smiled, and I guess that was enough for him. As soon as the waiter came to the table and handed him the check, Uncle Jim payed it off and we left."

Later that evening, Mom was going around the house cleaning up whatever she could.  
"Seth! Get your shoes away from the front door!"

"Why?" I asked, picking the pillow that was laying on my face off and placing it on the floor. I knew she must have vacuumed while I was sleeping, after that horrible dinner of Mom trying to perfect mac-and-cheese. There was no pillow on my face before.  
"When I was living here, my mom would have slapped me silly if I left my shoes by the door; I ain't cuttin' you slack. Go put your shoes up in your room." She put them on my lap and I groaned, not wanting to get up. Who knew the couch could be comfortable. "And go pack yourself up some clothes; Soda is picking you up tomorrow and you get to spend your weekend with him."

"Really?" I asked, leaning my head on the back of the leather couch to face her. "You don't mind seeing him, talking to him?" She shook her head as she started wiping the kitchen table down.

"I figure that after years of not talking to him but keeping his only son, I feel the need to have to talk to him. Plus, I sort of just want to. Did I ever tell you how heart-broken I was, just for hurting him? I couldn't sleep for months, and my grandmother got so tired of me moping around the house that she threatened to bring me to one of the teen maternity homes. She scared me into forgetting, or at least trying to. Now, I'm trying to make things right." She looked at me and stopped what she was doing, folding her arms across her chest. "Why do you care so much?"

"Cause I would think you'd have trouble talking to him; that's all. Question Mom; did you have a choice to stay or go?" She shook her head.

"As soon as my mother found out she called my grandmother and I had to go before I knew it. I told Soda the day before I left." She walked swiftly into the kitchen and then shut the door. Well, that was the end of that conversation. I looked around the too-clean living room, and sighed knowing Mom would kill me if I made a mess. The couch looked all too inviting for it to only be nine thirty at night. It wasn't like I had anywhere to be, but going back to sleep would be all too stupid. My attention went toward where my shoes rested on the couch. I was told to put them away. I decided I might as well get it over with and picked my shoes up from the couch and made my way up the stairs, trudging in protest.

Once I got up the stairs, I looked into the room where Mom was sleeping, noticing that she must have hit that room with her cleaning obsession as well. I looked at the all-too-neat folded clothes all stacked on the bed, and her suitcases tucked neatly under the bed, and all I could do was shake me head. She was too much of a neat freak and one that I could tell was going to drive Uncle Jim crazy. The first time I went into his house; there was clutter and ashtrays filled with a bunch of cigarettes. She was enough to drive anyone nuts.

I went into my room (which I was told used to be Mom's) and threw my shoes in the closet, closing it tightly. The bed looked too inviting, and I knew I was going to loose the battle against sleep, and was unconscious by the time my head hit the pillow.


	8. Chapter 8

**I am so sorry it took so long to type up this chapter. The truth is I actually have been handwriting everything, but I could never get it typed up (Yeah, let's blame school, cause I've been swamped in tests, quizzes, schoolwork, homework, etc.) So, the only way I found time was now, when my sister-in-law is in labor (RIGHT NOW SHE'S 7 CM DILATED!) So, I'll be an aunt soon, I'm just waiting for time to pass (My mom and brother are boring as ever, and my sister-in-law is sleeping) So my attention turned to the MacBook, and Seth. I am just mad that I don't have my handwritten work, but oh well, I'll just try and remember what I wrote. Can't be too hard, right? So, let's move onto the next chapter. I hope you all enjoy.**

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Chapter 8

"I think I'm going to die," Mom said the next morning as I came down the steps, my feet pounding with the weight of the morning. Sleep never hit me before like it did last night, and even though I felt refreshed, I still felt cranky. Mom was sitting at the table with a cup of coffee in one hand, and a cigarette in the other. Why was she smoking so much? "The police still have no leads on James or Jamie. It's been four days; I can't take it anymore." By the moment I sat on the steps; they seemed oblivious to my pounding feet about two minutes ago, I was sure they didn't know I was eavesdropping. "I hate this! I'm reliving my past; I haven't smoked since I was sixteen! I want my little Jamie back!" At that rate she was crying, and then it became muffled.  
"Shh..Sandy, everything is going to be fine. They'll find Jamie soon, and then you can file for a divorce and move in with me."

"No I can't. This house creeps me out. Every second I'm in here makes me relive my childhood. I can't. I'm gonna try moving into a two bedroom apartment with Seth and when Jamie is found they'll share a room. I can probrably work something out with Sodapop so Seth can choose who to stay or even live with and-"  
"Sandy, you're getting ahead of yourself now," Uncle Jim warned. "If you need money, I'll lend you some, and I'll help you look for a job if you don't feel comfortable living here. I'm sure Soda wouldn't mind if Seth stays with him until you get enough money to stay on your feet." There was a slight hesitation as I heard someone take the phone off the hook. "Go. Call him."  
"I don't have his number," Mom said matter-of-factly. "I'll go ask Seth." There it was; my cue to make an entrance.

"Good Morning," I said, rubbing my eyes in exhaustion. Mom came over to me with a hug, and I hugged her back tightly. As we were hugging, I looked out the window to see Soda getting out of his car.  
"Umm," I began to say, but they turned around and saw too. Mom let go of me and then went to the door. She closed the door and all I heard was, "Soda, I need to talk to you." I looked at Uncle Jim, who only put on a smile; and a fake one if you ask me. It was when he left that the phone Sandy left on the table began to ring. After about three times it grew annoying, and I went to pick up the phone.  
"Witman residence," I said, sitting down at the card table. I looked out the window to Mom and Soda talking, and smiled, that is until I heard the voice on the line.

"Seth, where are you and your mother?"

"I'm not answering that James. How did you get this number?"

"I can easily find out where you two are from your area code, Seth; so why not end the suspense? I want you and your mother back here, and as soon as you get back you are going back to school, and you'll stay there until your grades improve."  
"We're not going back," I answered simply. "Mom wants Jamie back too. Now answer me-"

"She won't get him back until she gets on this phone and tells me that she is coming back to Florida." Uncle Jim passed by the hallway, and I signaled him to get Mom. He immediately understood and ran outside, Mom and Soda following him into the small cramped kitchen minutes later.  
"How did you get this number?" I said, almost through my teeth.

"Sandy left the number near her desk."

"You went through her stuff! How dare you!" At that rate, Mom swiped the phone from me and answered it. I looked up at Soda, who looked at me confusion written across his face. I mouthed James' name and he nodded understanding what I meant. Mom began to cry, but she held a strong voice so it didn't seem anywhere close to being upset.  
"How could you say you were a father to him, both of them never had a father figure in their life growing up! I'm done with you James Colbury; I want a divorce, I've spoken to the police and the judge and told them that I am taking Jamie." And with that last comment, she slammed the phone on the hook and got herself a steaming cup of hot coffee from the coffee maker. She took a quick look at Soda and gestured toward the coffee pot, but he shook his head in refusal.  
"What; are you still addicted to your chocolate milk in the morning?" He shook his head and then said. "More like hot chocolate now. I just never could stomache coffee, I don't see how Darry or Ponyboy can either." He shifted in his chair and then looked at her. "So, as we were talking about earlier. I'll take Seth in for awhile while you try to get enough money for an apartment. I'll see if I can make room for Jamie too. Also, Darry might also be able to get you a job, but if not, then I think there are some open spots at the hotel I work at."  
"Hotel? What happened to wanting to own the DX with Steve?" Right then, was instant silence. Dad was looking down hard at the table, jaw clenched. He took in a breath.  
"Steve died in Vietnam. While we were there the DX was joined with Sunoco and I lost my job with the gas station. Then, while I was, jobless, to say the least, Darry told me about the hotel, and how it needed baggage boys and let's just say I was more then happy to take the job."  
"It's good you found a job though; although why do you still work there? You must be the person that worked there longest."

"I'm the third person that's worked there longest. But, I only wish I could find a job elsewhere, but you need a high-school diploma to work in most places. Plus, I'm more then happy working where I am." There was a long awkward silence, and finally Mom opened her mouth, and started another conversation.  
"So, how is it that Darry can get me a job?"

"He owns his own roofing business. He has a few desk jobs that you can probrably take; he lacks people that like to sit behind a desk." Mom smiled; a look of hope.

"Perfect," she replied, taking yet another sip of her coffee.

After Soda came over and talked to Mom, and even Uncle Jim; I grew bored of waiting around and started reading some book I found on the shelf. It told stories of different mysteries that centered around one girl, who was finding out more about her life. I was entertained just sitting on the couch and reading, that I didn't notice Uncle Jim walking by me.  
"You like that?" he asked curiously. I nodded, turning onto the next page.

"I usually don't like reading, but this, this is just awesome. I never read a book that I could relate to." I read the last sentence of the page I was on and closed it, folding down the side of the page I was on first. He gave out a brief laugh, and sat down by me.  
"You know who wrote that novel, right?" He asked, raising a brow. I shook my head and looked at the front cover, the gold lettering of the name P.M. Curtis standing out at the bottom of the page from the title. "That's your uncle, Ponyboy." I thought I felt my jaw drop. My uncle; writing a fantastic book that I could actually read. There was no way. Uncle Jim laughed at me, and rubbed the top of my head, ruffling my hair. Boy did I need a haircut! "Are you adjusting to life here?"  
"If you call having my Mom and Dad talking in the kitchen, and James trying to find me adjusting, then yes; I'm adjusting real well."

"It'll get better you know. Your brother will be found and he'll live down here too. Your Mom and Dad will probrably be great friends so there would be no conflict in front of you."

"Only if you can create a miracle," I replied, sighing. "With how awkward things are between them now; I'm afraid it'll only get worse from here. Mom and Dad will start fighting before you know it."

"And how do you know?" Uncle Jim asked. "They used to get along great. The only reason they are acting like this is because they both had a son together, and this was brought to his attention only four to five days ago that he really was a father all along. I'm sure it'll be fine." I never took his words seriously, and I just laughed to myself. How ridiculous could what he said sound? I turned my attention back to the girl in the story; amazed again by the girl in the story, and how much her situation sounded so close to mine.

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** I thought this was a nice place to stop. I actually stopped writing for a little bit because she did in fact have the baby. I am soooooo happy!! : --does this sound like an enthused aunt? I hope so, cause I am! Anyway, the chapter really should have been longer, but I can't remember a lot of what I wrote on paper, so the next chapter will at least be six pages long. Hope you all enjoyed.**


	9. Chapter 9

**TNS- Thank you for the congrats. Her name is Lindsay Marie and she was born at 6 lbs 11 ounces. :)**

**Ok, so I wasn't very happy with this chapter; but I was sick of trying to re-write this. This is the best of 10 drafts..but the next chapter will be more exciting, I can assure you of that!**

**Jordan R.B.**

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It was a sign; summer was going to come around the corner, and fast. I haven't even really realized I had missed a week of school, that is, until Soda turned down the music in the car.  
"When and where do you go back to school?"

"Hopefully never. I'm...not a good student. I'm always failing something and getting teased for it. I've actually asked Mom if I could drop out, and she, well, she didn't say yes or no, but she was planning on having me work during the day so James wouldn't know about me leaving school." I slipped my other shirt on, and then made a grab for my jeans as I went into the bathroom to change, and gussy up. There was no way I'd even look presentable soon if I didn't get a hair cut. I brushed the hair out of my face so I could take a better look.  
"You know, of all the things that we could both have as a similarity; I was hoping school wouldn't be one of them." His voice came through the door, a disappointed voice.

"What do you mean?" I asked, grabbing the hair gel from my bathroom bag. I took a big glob of it, and smoothed it through my hair. It'll do for now; until I get myself to a hair place.  
"I used to be in your shoes. I actually quit school because I thought I was dumb and then got a job at the DX gas station so I had something to do with my time. As much as I thought it wasn't important then; it's not that way now. I regret never finishing school. I could have really done something with my life, but no. I'm stuck here cause I got no money to go anywhere else." I took thought into what he said and sighed. In all honesty, I did want a good job, who doesn't? It's just that I sometimes feel as if it's too much work to get a decent job with a decent pay. In all reality, life sucked and I only wished that I wasn't on the same boat as other people. The rest of the car ride was silent and I figured it was best that it be that way.

It was different once we got in the door though. Tristan barked merrily and jumped up wanting me to pet him. He wouldn't stop barking until I did, and then he took one of his squeaky toys from the side of the room and wanted to play tug-o-war with it. Soda laughed at me when I lost, and all I could think to do was stick out my tongue at him and challenge him against Tristan as well.  
"That's not fair; your younger then me!"

"Yeah it is! Your only thirty something!"

"Thirty-two."

"Still not that old," I argued. "You just can't admit that Tristan is stronger then you." He shrugged and I think all I could do was laugh at him. We continued playing around with the too happy dog, while he high-fived and danced around the living room; happy to have more attention with each passing second. I think he mostly got his happiness from Soda; I was almost sure of it. Once Tristan got tired and lazily rested his head on Soda's lap; the two of us got to talking about life, jobs and other things that seemed to matter. I told him about my ex-girlfriend Hayley and how she only dated me cause I was rich, and then Soda told me about his life growing up. It was rather interesting.  
"You were surrounded by death; weren't you?"

"I guess you can say that. Johnny died a hero in everyone's eyes though and Steve died an American hero for defending our country." He smiled at the thought. "But Dallas; he just snapped, there was no way we could have saved him. The cops got to him long before we ever could. He saved our family though."  
"How?" I asked. "He basically killed himself!"

"Well, one night, Ponyboy and Darry were fighting. Now, it isn't like it'd be if they fought now. This would be a twenty year old matching a fourteen year old. When they fought; they got me involved most of the time. I think it was the worst though because they got me involved in that one fight the day I got the letter I sent your mother returned unread. I couldn't take it and Dallas was my example. I told them that if we didn't cut the act; we'd end up like Dallas when he was alive. I didn't want to see my brothers ending up like he did. So, in my eyes, Dallas was a hero." I nodded understanding what he meant. I could never imagine being Dallas Winston; he didn't even really have a home to go to.  
"So do you miss your friends?" he tried starting the conversation back up. I nodded.

"I had five friends that I always hung out with; Jason, Todd, Larry, Fred and Chuck. We always got into trouble, but it was fun. They were the main reason I was grounded a lot of the time. One time; we hitched a ride up to the high school and James found out. He locked me up in my room and took anything I could use for amusement out."  
"Sounds like you had it rough; living with James and all." He stopped in his tracks, and then looked at me, curiosity flaring in his eyes. "Did you ever get the feeling he could have not been your father?" I thought about that question; the many nights that Jamie crept in my room. I could remember thinking why he looked more like James then I did, and where my reddish-brown hair came from. I looked through the many pictures of both James and Sandy's family, and figured I must have gotten something from my grandparents, Mom's parents. I shrugged and answered with, "I guess so."  
"That night when your mother told my about being pregnant with you; she told me that you weren't mine. What she said always ran through my head and I kept thinking about my life if she told me that you were my child. I was just...curious if you went through something similar." I smiled then, remembering something.  
"I used to think James wasn't my father cause he was, 'too mean to be' although I guess I was right." He laughed slightly and then the doorbell rang.

"That would be the pizza." He got up slowly from the couch, just as Tristan bounced up and down in excitement that someone was at the door. While Soda dealt with the pizza man, I looked over at the shelf, one with very few books on it. He had the book Uncle Pony wrote, along with the sequel, and then the rest of the what was on it; notebooks. Tons of them; all aligned one next to the other. I began to wonder what could be written in them. "Something fascinating about the shelf?" I jumped out of my skin and then breathed out. Was Soda watching me most of the time I was looking?  
"Yeah; the notebooks. What do you have all them for?" He smiled and walked over to the shelf. His fingers traced along the bindings; and finally pulled one off.

"I don't, well, write, if you were thinking that. I mostly put a lot of pictures in them and anything that seemed important at the time. I also had people in the gang write in them too. In fact-" He pulled one off the shelf and handed it to me. "You may want to read that one, or look through it. Are you a reader like your mother?" I shook my head and opened up the front cover. I began to wonder what was so different about this one from the other five.

Hours later, I was sitting on the couch alone in the living room; watching what was on the television. It was a horror movie, Halloween with this killer named Mike Meyers. He was really starting to creep me out; damn babysitters.  
"Tristan!" I hissed. "Come here!" Tristan, who was sleeping soundly on a mat near the front door, perked his head up at me. Getting up cautiously and walking over, he wagged his tail in excitement and jumped up next to me. Well, if Soda wasn't available, then the dog was just as good for horror movie company. Once the movie was over, I sort of laughed at myself of being scared of the movie. Once a romance movie came on, I shut the tv off and rested my head near Tristan; instantly gliding off to sleep.


	10. Chapter 10

**Alright, once again because I was really busy with school stuff and editing this five or six times, I finally got this one up. It's leading up to an important part; I PROMISE! The next chapter I already have hand-written and even my friends read it and said it's kind of exciting, so I'm excited what all of you will think of it! :D**

The notebook was staring back at me; silently whispering that I should read it's contents. The weird thing is, I'm sort of scared to read it. There can be anything written inside! My hand moved forward to grab ahold of it and then to add more suspense, the doorbell rang. I sighed and looked through the peephole in the door. Linda.  
"Good morning!" she cheered giving me a quick hug. Awkwardly, I slung my arm around her, remembering that this was something normal families did. She had a glowing smile on her face. "You would not believe what happened yesterday!"  
"What? We all got a million bucks?"

"No! Two-Bit is coming down and for once, by himself!" At that moment, I heard noise from behind me as Soda was clinging onto his foot, jumping up and down. I. Stubbed. My. Toe!" he yelped and jumped his way into the kitchen. Linda laughed at him, and covered her mouth to keep from continuing.  
"How late are you this time?"

"Twenty minutes!" he called, grabbing his hotel jacket from the door knob. He rushed past us then; and started to walk out the door until Linda said, "Your forgetting your shoes." Soda passed Linda a glance, rolling down his car window.  
"What!"

"You forgot your shoes!"  
"I got an extra pair in the locker at work; but thank you!" We both watched him drive off, almost speeding down the road. I had to laugh then; I had never seen James late to work once and it was a strange sight seeing an adult rush to get somewhere; unless you count the time when Mom forgot I was at the bus stop when I was five and ran from the house to get me.  
"I actually came here to see if you wanted to go with me to the library."

"For?"  
"Research for school. I have a project due; assigned especially to the girl that screamed and yelled till she got to see her father during the school year. I get to hand in a three page essay on 'The History of Tulsa, Oklahoma'." She shrugged before saying, "Plus when I'm stuck at home I'm bored, so I need something to read."

"Oh I see," I said; trying to see myself looking up books in the library. I couldn't. I wasn't really a reader and never have been. "You should read the book Uncle Pony write; it's the only book I ever really got through."  
"I've read it. That was one of the only times Daddy really sit down with me and read to me."

"Oh." I felt envy then; completely jealous that she had such a memory with her father. Would Soda have read to me if I was younger and asked him to? Before I went into deep thought about the topic, Tristan barked at the both of us and Linda went over to him, gently stroking his gold fur, which he seemed to enjoyed.  
"You know what's funny? He's old and yet doesn't act it; it's like he's a kid at heart."

"I wish we were all like that," I replied, tugging my shoes on.

"Uncle Soda is."

"He seems like a regular adult; mature, employed-"

"Wait till he's not working. You wanna see a kid at heart; you'll find one in him. Just wait till our parents gang hook up during the summer; they all change. He might also be acting mature around you right now; seeing as how he just found out about being your father. His ways will bend. Anyway, I'll come over in about two hours and then we'll head over." she kissed my cheek, somethings she's never done before, and walked off.

I got bored sitting around his house after fifteen minutes. I figured then that I could start reading that journal, or at least skim through. I picked up the book and opened it up. Uncle Pony wrote a lot of stuff in it, like quotes and pictures of horses. I was beginning to think it was only his book, until I got to one page; a page that a guy named Steve Randle wrote on; which was something about hating the way his father treated him. I could see that many of Steve's thoughts related to mine about James. I could say that he truly had it better though; at least it was his real father and he was paying him after being kicked out of the house. James would ground me; end of story. I flipped the page over to something this guy named Two-Bit wrote; the guy that was going to be visiting us soon. He drew a picture of Mickey Mouse, (which was a better drawing then I could ever do.) and then wrote about how much he loved beer, Mickey, his switchblade and then of course, the gang. It mostly looked like something a second grade student would write with his choppy sentences like,

_If there is one thing in the world I love, it's beer. It tastes good. Would Mickey drink beer if I gave him one? I think so._

Etc.

Finally I got to something rather interesting; something Soda wrote which actually took up a whole page....

_Mom and Dad were found dead yesterday and I dont know what to do. Im gonna miss them alot._

He attached a picture of him with my uncles and his parents, or, my grandparents.

_I am puting this in here cause I never want to forget them. One day, if and when I have kids, Im gonna tell them about Mom and Dad; two of the greatest people in Oklahoma. I will also promise never to abanden them, ever. This will be one promise that I will always keep. I guess Im just pretty damn confused about what Im gonna do without them. Darry told the court hed take care of me and Pony. Ive been pretty tore up about their deaths but Darry said that if I rought it out; it'd take out as much pain as punching would. I guess it works but I still feel pretty lousy. Darry must have told Pony the same thing he told me about writing things out cause he's at his desk drawing horses or somethin. _

_Ive also been thinking about quittin school. I havent been doing so well, especially in english and math. Dad was tryin to help me before he left with Mom to go to somewhere but it just didn't work. Damn, what am I gonna do without them._

I finished the page then and looked at the picture of them all. They really looked like some happy family that you could pass by walking down the street. I felt bad that he lost his parents when he did. I don't think I could ever imagine growing up without at least Mom leading me through life. I thought about what Linda said about Sodapop being a true kid at heart and began to wonder if it was maybe because he didn't have parents that he was like that. I almost jumped when someone was beeping the horn outside the house. I got up from the couch and carefully put the notebook on the coffee table. I could see Linda and Darry in his car. I looked around everywhere for the key that Soda left on the counter, and locked the door before heading to the library.


	11. Chapter 11

**Ugh; I am so upset that I can't make this chapter any better, (I actually like editing chapters, almost way too much.) So, I'm done. I've had many of my friends check it over and stuff and they said they liked this chapter so I hope you all too.**

**

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**

Uncle Darry dropped us off before he headed to work and Linda skipped happily into the building. I wonder what she was all excited about; it was just a big place filled with boring books for people who wanted, "common knowledge" which clearly wasn't me. She headed quickly to the non-fiction area and grabbed a huge armful of books before setting them down in the working stations, you know, with the big comfy chairs and the tables.  
"I hate my school," she stated once she sat down. "If only I waited till summer started, then, I wouldn't be in this mess. Anyway, do me a favor and look up some information from the old newspapers over there." She pointed to an old worn out shelf which had rows and rows of huge sized books, papers sticking out here and there and all of them dated; all the way back to the 1920s. I started walking over and picked them all up from the shelf and sat across from Linda. She was already hard at work; wearing her big glasses. She even clipped her hair back and was leaning over a book and writing down on another piece of paper of it's contents. I picked a random book from the stack and started looking through. There were pictures of people dancing in a high school with the title, "Will Rogers: Class of 1961" and many pictures of the president, car accidents, (which interested me so I read them). There was even an article about Elvis! I was so consumed in information that Linda tapped my shoulder and asked, "are you jotting anything down while you read your way through the 1960s and into the 1970s?"  
"Oh sorry, it just kind of sucked me in. Did you know Elvis is in here?" I flipped to a new page where there was a picture of a car stuck on the tracks. Linda sighed and said, "Just find some more interesting stuff and either write it down or mark it so we can photocopy it." I nodded but was already reading about the accident.

**Stuck on Track  
By: Lucas Sullivan  
**  
_ An accident occurred in Tulsa, Oklahoma last night when a car was stuck on train tracks. The victims were hit from the left side of the car, hitting the male victim first. There was no way they could move and after the husband was hit; the train continued to squish the car until the female victim was then killed. The victims were identified as Darrel and Evelyn Curtis, on their way home to see their kids who at the time were under the care of their older brother, Darrel Curtis JR. He was contacted at around 4:30 in the morning still awake and waiting for his parents to come home.  
'I thought something was wrong,' stated Darrel Curtis JR when he was identifying his parents. 'So I sent my younger brothers to bed and stayed up watching TV. I called their hotel and everything. Then an investigator came to my door and told me I had to come here. I never thought I'd loose my parents before.' Darrel Curtis JR stated that he will be going to court to file for custody of his younger brothers, Sodapop and Ponyboy, who were curious to know what was going on.  
'Darry came home the next day and our friends were over all about to go to school when Darry told us we could stay home for the day. Our friends left and that's when he told us that our parents were dead,' said younger brother, Sodapop Curtis, who was very shaken and upset at the time. 'We were never expecting anything this bad to happen.'_

I stopped then and re-read it several times. Our parents? In a newspaper? I looked up and tapped Linda on the arm.  
"Does family history count?" I asked, giving away hints in my voice. She put a sheet of looseleaf in the book and took the newspaper indexes from me.

"Oh my," she said looking at the car wreck. "Who was in this?"

"Our grandparents," I answered. "They were stuck on the tracks and were basically almost compacted to the train." A smile appeared on her lips.

"A family research paper is a great idea! I'm sure that we can find births and deaths and our parents must have been in the newspapers more then once! Seth, you are such a genius; I can kiss you right now. In fact-" she reached across the table and quickly kissed my cheek. "I just did!" She got up from her seat and put away all the books she had and threw out the notes. "Let's start now!" She grabbed the book labeled, 'The 1970s: Newspaper Index' and started skimming through. I laughed at her and how enthused she was and I skipped down the years and continued looking. It turns out that Darry one a lot of football honor-ships when he was in high school, (yeah, I went all the way back to the beginning of the book) and Ponyboy was one of the smartest kids in his grade; he won awards and won the spelling bee when he was in second grade. I was surprised that Soda was hardly in the newspapers at all. There was only one article and it was in 1966 when the DX was robbed. They showed both him and someone else with reporters who were asking what the man looked like. Linda then found something really shocking.  
"Seth, you're not gonna believe this!" Linda whispered. She shoved her 1970s newspaper index over mine and I immediately saw what she was talking about.

** Main Hospital looses Patients!   
By: Nancy Lowell**

_Elizabeth Curtis (22) went into the hospital and came out very upset that she would have to go into the hospital again tomorrow to have her baby removed.  
"The baby had no heartbeat," she explained. "And the doctor said that it was his mistake and that if I went in earlier he could have stopped it." She told her husband Darrel Curtis Jr, who was at home with 1 year old Linda Curtis, who said that they would ask to bury their child to go and pay their respects. Because of this mistake; the hospital is discussing the topic of firing Dr. McFellan. Ever since this mistake; many of his patients moved to different hospital for, 'better care.'_

"Woah," I said, shocked.

"I had a brother," Linda explained, I think to herself. Sh kept re-reading sentences and jotted down notes. She then went over to the copy machine and copied the page, sitting down to stare at it some more.  
"You know, Linda; they might have not told you because they were trying to recover from it themselves. I'm sure they didn't mean it intentionally."

"Just keep looking up more stuff, Seth," she answered. She opened the book back up and continued skimming through. I continued looking though until I came across a picture of Uncle Ponyboy with two other people I've never seen before. Once I read through I looked over at Linda and told her, "Uncle Ponyboy is a hero!"  
"Shh!" hissed the librarian sitting at her desk. I mouthed a quick 'sorry' to her and then looked at Linda; who already took the book from me and was reading.

"Oh, I've heard about Johnny and Dallas before," she said. "They were part of our parents gang when they were our age. They both died the same day; Johnny from severe burns and Dallas from, well, basically suicide."

"That's Johnny and Dallas?"

"Yep. That one with the sorta dark skin is Johnny, and the tougher looking one is Dallas. Uncle Pony sort of looks the same." I was impressed that Uncle Ponyboy would save them. I don't know what I'd do if I was him, mostly because I'd be afraid of burning to death myself. I looked over at Linda who still had her nose in the article and I tapped her shoulder.

"Why don't we go and visit Dallas and Johnny?" I asked. "I just think that if I'm gonna help you with this project; we'll need to know a little bit more about the people in our parents' gang." She shrugged and closed the newspaper index.  
"Ok, but first; we'll need a ride, and I'm not all that sure of what Daddy will say when we ask him to go and see his dead friends' graves."


	12. Chapter 12

"I don't think it's a very good idea, Linda," Uncle Darry said as we were being driven home. "Sodapop and Ponyboy are coming over tonight to work on bills and, well, mentioning Johnny and Dallas to them could hurt them. Plus, even if you could go tonight, they would want to come too. Maybe tomorrow."  
"So what if they want to come too, Dad. That would be their choice. You're not their guardian anymore and you don't need to make decisions for them."

"Well, I'm deciding for you, Linda. No, no, no, no, no." He seemed to lace that last word so she would get it in her head. "If I say it one more time I'm buying you a plane ticket home; end of discussion." She sunk into her chair then, anger flaring in her eyes.

That's when I noticed her eyes, how they were almost exact to Uncle Darry's. She didn't speak the whole rest of the way home; continuing to state out the window the rest of the way back. Once we got back though, Linda slammed the car door and went to her room.  
"I just-" Uncle Darry's voice trailed off as if he was trying to find a way to word what he was about to say, "-don't understand why she even wants to see them. She's never even met them before."

"It's for a school project," I explained. "We're researching the whole family." He smirked a little through his anger.

"As much as I wish they were, they weren't part of our family, Seth. There was no blood link to us what so ever. We were just...friends; that's all."

"I think she counts it though. We found them in old newspapers and articles. I understand if you didn't want to bring her tonight and she might have taken it the wrong way. Try to talk to her tomorrow or something. I can't imagine her staying mad forever."  
"Maybe you're right. Well, come on inside; we can talk before Soda and Pony come." We went through the front door and I sat down on the couch, trying to avoid the clutter. "Sorry, George was coloring."

"S'alright," I said politely as he sat in an armchair across from me. "What time are they coming anyway?"

"Before Two-Bit is," he answered, a smile on his face. "It's Pony's birthday surprise; Two-Bit told me not to say anything." We both heard a car come into the driveway and Darry looked in the back window. "Speaking of the devil."

"Hello Curtis family!" said the man that had barged in through the doorway. He was laughing crazily, almost like a hyena as Darry and him hugged tightly. Once they let go, Darry led him over to my couch; over to me, and I stood up trying to not look like a jackass.  
"Two-Bit, you would not believe this but this is Sodapop's son, Seth Colbury." Two-Bit's gray eyes widened as far as they could go as he turned to Uncle Darry.

"You talking about that baby that Sandy was supposed to have?" Uncle Darry nodded. "But she said he wasn't his!"

"She lied," I explained. "I guess to protect him." He extended his arm, a warm, reckless smile appearing on his face.

"Glad you found out the truth kid. Welcome to the family!" I took his arm and smiled. Suddenly, I had this yearning to get to know this guy better. "How long have you been here in Tulsa?"

"About a week," I admitted.

"More like a week and a half," said Linda, coming into the small living room. "Hey Two-Bit." We all sat in the living room and talked for awhile. Two-Bit explained to me that he moved because of his wife and what happened the day that Sandy left Tulsa. All of us listened carefully, like kids listening to a bedtime story. Then, he wanted to know, in his words, 'where I've been hiding so long'. I told him about Florida and about James, Jamie, and why Mom was now in Tulsa too.  
"Why did she marry the jerk if a, she didn't love him, and b, he's abusive?"

"He wasn't always like that. He hid it from her until I was born. He started hitting and yelling at me when I was old enough to start thinking about job opportunities. He wanted me to run his company, Colbury Propane, but I never listened. I started having ideas of dropping out of school and then Mom told me about Soda."  
"Wow, she hid that big ass secret from you for sixteen years of your life!"

"Yes sir,"

"Woah! I can't hold a secret for more then ten seconds! I would've went ballistic!" We kept the conversation going, until we all found that we were talking about favorite books when we heard another car pull up in the driveway; Soda and Uncle Pony.  
"Quick! Hide me somewhere!" Two-Bit exclaimed childishly as Linda led him in her room. Uncle Darry and I could hear them both giggling as George ran out of his room laughing as well.

"Two-Bit!" he shrieked and ran into his father's side with a hug. Maybe he was finally getting used to being with his father.

"We can hear you from in here, calm down!" Uncle Darry ordered as he sat down on the couch with me and Linda came running out sitting in one too. She still didn't look at Uncle Darry. The front door opened and Uncle Pony came in with Soda, both of them with bills in their hand.  
"Darry we both went through all of these bills and it's going to take all night."

"Good thing that we're a team then," Uncle Darry said grinning. "Hey Linda, Seth, wasn't there something you needed to give Pony. Wasn't it for his birthday coming up?"

"Oh yeah," I played along and kept a straight face, which was kind of hard. Who ever got a person as a birthday present? We went into Linda's old room to see Two-Bit looking at a Mickey Mouse toy.  
"I remember when Ponyboy got this for me," he said. "Did you know that Mickey Mouse and Elvis Presley were the best things to watch and listen to when I was your age? I sure did love that Donna Ried show when Elvis was on it."  
"Two-Bit; come back to reality; we're in the time of Madonna and Aerosmith." All of us had a small laugh before Two-Bit piped up and asked, "does Ponyboy have the slightest idea that I'm here?" We both shook our heads and then he smiled throwing open the door and running down the hall. "Happy birthday Ponyboy Curtis!"  
"What the-" Ponyboy looked at him and then smiled as he jumped up from his seat and hugged him. "What are you doing here?"

"I'm here to celebrate you getting older!" he replied swinging him into a hug before sighing. "I wish you weren't so heavy. My girls back home are easy to swing around but you," he sighed before finishing his sentence. "We got older." Ponyboy looked and him and then sighed, nodding. "We did; did we. I guess our spirits never did though; you and Soda are still pretty reckless."  
"That we are," Two-Bit agreed. He looked back at me and then at Soda. "Belated congratulations on becoming a father by the way."

"Thanks," Soda said. "I was a little late in knowing, so we're all on the same page." They both grinned and then the evening went on from there. They didn't do their bills like it was planned and I think they were okay with that. They told Linda and I stories about the crazy things they used to do when they were our age.

After things settled down, we were all in the living room, (Linda moved all George's stuff into his room) and we all talked, or most of us anyway.  
"Where did Two-Bit go?" I asked, thumbing through one of their old photo albums; which was on a page with what I was guessing was their whole gang.

"Probrably something else to make me feel older," Uncle Pony joked before almost spitting out the next gulp of his drink. "Darry, look at us in this picture! It was the night before that rumble."  
"Yeah; Two-Bit wanted to take that picture, remember? He said something about wanting to hang it up all over town to show everyone that we were tough."

"That's right; we were supposed to throw that party too and never did," Soda commented, flipping to the next page in the photos he was looking in. "I wonder why Dallas never smiled in any of these, not even once."  
"Probrably trying to make an image for himself."

"Maybe to look tough." I watched them for a second and then looked out the window where Two-Bit was outside, bringing in a huge cake.

"I'm back! So break out the candles and let's sing that corny song to Ponyboy. Then we can dig into this huge thing!" Everyone stood in amazement at the huge cake in front of us. "Well come on, hurry up!"  
"I think we should wait, Ally said she'd be coming here around nine o'clock,"

"Who's Ally?" I asked, talking for the first time since we all moved into the living room.

"My sister. Pony and her are married," he cracked a smile. "Didn't know you had another aunt, didja?"

"No, not really," I admitted sheepishly. "How long have you guys been married?"

"A while," Pony answered with a grin. "She's going to have a baby soon too; a boy."

"Really!" Two-Bit sat in between Uncle Darry and Uncle Pony. "And what is the little greaser's name anyway?" Ponyboy smiled, his eyes glistening with tears.

"Johnathan Darrel Curtis." he answered with a small smile. "Johnny."


	13. Chapter 13

**I know I haven't updated in awhile and I am so truely sorry. You see, my school is extreamly cruel; they took the internet off our laptops for winter break and if you're wondering, yes they suck! Anyway, here is the next chapter to Sixteen Years**...

* * *

The birthday party for Uncle Pony was a lot of fun. I got to meet Ally, who was incredibly nice, and incredibly big. She was really close to nine months pregnant. Two-Bit told more jokes that made everyone laugh; everyone except Linda. She got up from the seat she was in and walked to the back porch. Curious, I followed her and sat down on the stairs.  
"You know, you can't stay mad at him forever."

"I'm not mad; I'm _frustrated_. There was a time when I could ask him for anything and he would say yes, it was like I had him wrapped around my finger. He's different now. I never experienced this sort of feeling against him before. I've been thinking all night about going back home, I really should have just waited until summer."

"Well, I'm happy you came when you did. If you didn't come, I wouldn't have met you and it would have taken me longer to meet Sodapop. You should just..talk to him. I'm sure he won't bite, not with Two-Bit and Aunt Ally sitting right in the same room with him."

"Hmm, maybe," she answered, dropping the conversation. She sighed before walking off into the yard. I didn't understand where she was going or why, so I went back inside where the adults were still talking.  
"I really do miss being a kid. We lived a life that no one else could. Our gang was just a big...family. You just never come to see people have what we did, or do." Ponyboy was talking, I think trying to bring up the past. "I just wish Dallas, Johnny and Steve were still here with us."  
"They are, you just can't see them," Soda replied. "I'm pretty sure they are here in spirit, with Mom and Dad."

"Yeah, laughing at how funny we look as adults," Two-Bit laughed, a beer bottle rested in his hands. "Not many things changed though; I see Pony here still smokes."

"Well, he did try quitting cold turkey; it didn't end up very well, so we're weaning him now." Aunt Ally said as Uncle Ponyboy studied the cigarette box he had resting on the table.

"In a sense, I hate them. I hate how addicted to them I am and how it's eaten away at my life, but as for the calm feeling it gives-" he shuddered. "I hate to say it but it's a good feeling." I looked at the box then; the pack of Marbrow Light 100s. If I lived with Sodapop since I was a kid; would he have allowed me to smoke? Would he have allowed me to do half the things Uncle Pony did at my age. I looked over at Soda sitting in Uncle Darry's worn out arm chair. He stood out from the adults in the room. Uncle Darry and Two-Bit had beer bottles resting in their hands and Ponyboy (now) had a cigarette stuck between his thumb and pointer finger; Sodapop didn't have any of these things. He was a lot different from them.  
"You'll stop though; I have faith in you." As she said this she took the cigarette from Uncle Pony's hand and put it out, then taking her small petite hand and kissing him softly on the lips.

"I'd rather have a thousand of those then one of these cancer sticks," Uncle Pony said with a smile. "I'd rather not waste seven minutes of my life without you."

The evening ended shortly after and everyone went home except for Two-Bit, Soda and I. It seemed that whenever we were about to leave, Uncle Darry would bring something else up and we'd be there for another ten minutes. Finally when we got in the car and left; Soda looked at me.  
"You look a lot like Sandy," he said. I nodded my head.

"I used to wonder where my hair color came from. James has brown hair and I used to ask all the time why mine was reddish. I never really got a straight answer."

"So they even hid all the small details." He shook his head. "Did James say anything more about Jamie and him giving in yet?" I shook my head and looked out the window. Jamie; still gone, still somewhere with James. I wondered how Jamie was going to grow up after all of this; without being able to see his father and all that. I began to wonder what Jamie was doing while I was worrying about him; playing with toy trucks? Maybe James locked him up in his room everyday with nothing in there but a bed to sleep on. I shuddered at the thought. We pulled into Uncle Jim's driveway and I got out.

"I'll see you tomorrow," I said, closing the door with a thud. I got in the door where Mom and Uncle Jim were talking in the living room.

"Hey Seth," Mom called from the living room. "Did you have a nice time?"

"Yeah; I met Uncle Pony's wife and Two-Bit; it was fun." Mom smiled.

"Good." It was all she said before turning back to Uncle Jim. I glided up the stairs and went into my bedroom, wondering what I should do with myself for the rest of the night. I figured that it was a good night to watch TV; especially when they had a new movie coming out and showed how to make it. I smiled at the whole synopsis of Nightmare on Elm Street. Maybe Linda and I could go when it came out in theaters. I looked at Freddy Krugar's face and thought immediately of pepperoni pizza.  
"Mom! Can we get pizza!"

"Actually we were thinking of heading out to eat; get your shoes on!" I looked down at my feet where my tennis sneakers were laced on and shrugged running down the stairs.

"Where are we going anyway?" Mom was getting her shoes on while opening the door. She looked different tonight; way too different for this to be just going out to dinner.

"Probrably that steak house that we keep passing by a lot. I have someone to meet there." Great; she basically gave it away. I went into the backseat and just glared out the window. Oh yeah, she'll be meeting someone alright. It's going to be someone who isn't Soda. I knew it wasn't going to work out. She got into the front seat and smiled at Uncle Jim.  
"Oh, I'm so excited. I haven't seen Bryon since the year before I left Tulsa. I just can't believe I bumped into each other grocery shopping." She giggled a little at the little story she just told.

"Neither can I. I remember when we hung out together. He used to think there was something wrong with you for hanging out with the Curtis'. But then again right after he broke up with his girlfriend, Ponyboy asked her out."

"Really? Well maybe he'll think differently once he meets Seth; he's half Curtis."

"You'll be lucky if I even open my mouth to him," I mumbled. I really couldn't believe any of this. Dad was right in front of her and she doesn't even realize it. The word 'Dad' was really starting to emerge in my head now.

We pulled into the parking lot of the steak house and walked in. There was a man standing there in greeting, holding out his hand to Mom.  
"Sandy Witman; I still can't believe we saw each other again." The man looked up at Uncle Jim then, a smile appearing on his face. "And Jimmy, you haven't changed at all!"

"I can say the same to you. Have you heard anything from Mark?" There it was, instant silence.

"Mark died a while back," he said quietly. "He hitch-hiked two kids and aimed a gun at them."

"Oh." We went inside getting a table and that Bryon guy was eying me.

"Bryon; this is my son, Seth. Seth, this is Bryon; he's a very old family friend."

"Hi," I said quickly, grabbing the menu in front on me and looking at it's contents. Yeah, this was going to be one long night.


	14. Chapter 14

I slowly twirled the fork around in my plate as Mom and Bryon were 'catching up' which I and anyone who could see them would call 'flirting'. It made me sick watching them.  
"So Seth; will you be moving to Tulsa now that you found your dad?" I shot him a fake smile.

"Oh yeah. Just trying to keep the family together." I said sarcastically stabbing one of the raviolis on my plate. Mom shot a glare at me and then lifted the napkin that was on her lap onto the table.  
"Seth, can you come with me to the car? I think I've lost my earring and I need help looking for it."

"Your earring is still in your ear," I replied.

"No, my helix earring; come with me." She quickly pulled my hand and dragged me out to the car. "What. Are. You. Doing?"

"Oh don't talk to me like I'm stupid; you know you're flirting with him! What about Soda, Mom? You know, my father, Daddy, Ol' Pops!" I was so angry I was close to shaking. "And you're a liar; you don't have a helix earring; you don't even have that part of your ear pierced!"  
"That's besides the point, Seth! You are embarrassing me! Bryon is just a friend; and tonight we were supposed to catch up. Why would you try and ruin this? What if you went back to Florida and tried to see your friends again? How would you like it if I was being obnoxiously rude in front of them!"  
"I wouldn't be flirting with them like you are! I can't believe you don't see that Dad is right there, waiting in front of you!"

"What if I don't want your father? Did you ever think about that? Did you ever think that maybe I was over him a long time ago? Start using that smart head of yours, Seth; you never seem to use it."  
"Smart, Mom? You don't know me at all, do you? I'm going to Soda's." I had change in my wallet and I spotted a pay phone near the door. Mom glared at me, tears glistening in her eyes. She didn't want him? How could that be? She was saying a day or two ago that she wanted to repair the relationship between them! I put the change into the slot and dialed the number, not even hesitating to have him answer. "Soda; it's Seth. Can you pick me up at the steak house, you know, the one near that fancy hotel across the street from here?"  
"Uhh; yeah, I think I know which one you're talking about. Is something wrong?"

"I'll explain later; just come." I hung up the phone and turned around, Mom gone. I sighed, sitting down on the bench with my head in my hands. I thought that her sending me here to find him was her way of trying to bring the family together. Why couldn't I have a regular kind of family; one that was like puzzle pieces, they all come together but you have to try and find the right fit.

Soda's car came into the parking lot and I ran into the car and buckled my seatbelt.  
"Seth, tell me what's going on," Soda ordered, concern flaring in his voice and eyes. I looked at him, feeling myself get hot with anger. I sucked it in and said in a calm voice, "Mom is flirting with that Bryon guy." He sucked in a laugh.

"Your mom...and Bryon Douglas?"

"I think that's what his name was." He looked at me and laughed. "What is so funny! This isn't funny at all!"

"Oh; I'm sorry Seth, it's just-" he started to laugh again. "There is no possible way that Bryon would be flirting with Sandy. It's not the fact what it IS is funny, just the idea that you thought he was into your Mom. He's _gay_, Seth. He's been going out with this guy I used to know for years now." I raised one of my brows and looked at him. So everything Sandy said was true, and I yelled at her like a complete and total idiot.  
"Gay? But I thought that he dated Pony's X-girlfriend!"

"More like the other way around; Pony dated his x-girlfriend. I was in Vietnam when he did date Cathy Carlson but when I came back Bryon was so confused with life he didn't know what he was going to do anymore. His mom suggested that he go to a therapist, who was a distant friend of mine. They fell in love during their sessions." I stared at him in disbelief.  
"Wouldn't he be bi-sexual then? If he liked girls once then-"

"Save it. Cathy Carlson was the last girl he was with and actually loved. Pony told me the day Bryon visited Mark in the hospital was the day Bryon changed into a better man. He wouldn't hang out with the same people he used to, he started treating Ponyboy with more respect which he never did before. Bryon was just someone lost in the world. I think when he met M&M later on it made his depression a lot worse, but Bryon is better now." He pulled into the driveway and we walked into the apartment. Tristan greeted us; his tail wagging excitedly as he jumped up and down in place.  
"Easy buddy," Sodapop said, rubbing his head. "We're home." I went over to the couch.

"I feel horrible now. I yelled at Mom and called her a liar. She must think I'm the worst son she's got!"

"I don't think so Seth. I'm pretty sure she understand the situation you were in. She's your mother, I don't know but they always seem to have this way to forgive and forget," he paused and looked down at the watch on his wrist. "Did you eat when you were at the restaurant, or are you hungry?"  
"I had food and all but I didn't really eat." Tristan came over and sat on my foot; whacking my leg with his wagging tail. I looked around for the tug-of-war rope and found it. Grabbing onto the other end, I put it in front of Tristan's wet nose and he took the other end, waiting for me to signal him to start the war.  
"Go!" I challenged as I felt the rope slide between my fingers. I got a better grip for about two minutes and then purposely let go. Tristan wagged his tail a little more; excited that he had gotten the rope and I didn't. Soda laughed as he got up from the chair and got his shoes and jacket on.  
"I'm going to run to McDonald's and get us some burgers or something. You can stay here if you want. Just leave me a note if you decided to go home okay?"

"I'll stay here and watch television," I assured him as he opened the door stepping out. "See you when you get back." He smiled and then closed the door behind him. Tristan eyed me curiously and I laughed. "Yeah, you can come up here." I patted the seat next to me and he jumped up and rested his head on my leg.

I began to skim through the channels and then found something decent to watch; Dukes of Hazzard. It was the only good thing on the couple of channels Soda could watch and I was not going to tear my hair out watching Little House on the Prairie; there was no way in hell. Once the last five minutes of the show came on, I looked over at the bookshelf and got up from my seat to go get the first one. I curled up on the couch and read and looked at some of the pages. I came across a lot of pages that Pony drew horses and people on then finally came across cursive writing; written by my grandparents.

_ Sodapop,_

Well you started sixth grade today sweetheart and we are so proud you've made it to this grade and made it this far. We fully understand how hard it was on you throughout the years with your grades but we are so proud of our sweet darling son. You will be a great person someday; we can see it already. Continue trying your hardest sweetheart, someday it'll all be worth it.

-Mom and Dad

Once I finished the letter, I had to agree with them. He was a good person and I was overly proud to call him my father.

+++

"Seth I'm back," Sodapop said, getting off his shoes. He tossed me a white McDonald's bag with, of course, the logo of a big yellow 'M'. The smell of cooked beef and salty french fries in-scented the bag. I took out all the fries and began scorfing them down. "Your not going to die from hunger, slow down."  
"I know." I replied sipping down some of my drink, I think it was sweet tea. "So what do you want to do now?"

"I don't care; I don't have to work tonight or all day tomorrow so we can do, well, anything." He gulped down some fries and then smiled. "Wait, I have the perfect idea! Pack that up and take it in the car." He took his keys from the counter and went to the door. I packed up my food into the bag and had my drink in my other hand. I slid into the passenger seat and buckled my seat belt.  
"Where are we going?" I asked him with curiosity. He got into the car himself and backed out of the driveway.

"I'm going to give you an exclusive tour of Tulsa. I'll show you where I used to work and everything that I remember as a kid."  
**

* * *

  
Ok I thought this way a good place to stop. Special thanks to TheNightimeSky with my dilemma. Anyway, there's a good chapter coming up so stay tuned :)  
-Jordan R.B.**


	15. Chapter 15

**Of all the people that get it, I HATE WRITER'S BLOCK THE MOST!! Just take note, I still have it on this story so whatever I write was probrably the draft of many other chapters and this one 'made the cut'. So..yeah. ALSO (this will be added to my updates as well) I've been reading through Sixteen Years and was looking at Linda, who I think looks like she might have her own story to tell and I can see her maybe going through drastic changes. So instead of posting Not Looking Back, which was supposed to be the sequel to Sixteen Years and narrated again in Seth Colbury's P.O.V.; I am going to write another one instead and completely just chuck Not Looking Back in the garbage. This new one will be in the P.O.V. of Linda Curtis and will explain what happened when she went back home to Florida and blah blah blah (if I write anymore; all my ideas will be written here XD) So here we go, the next chapter lol.**

**NEW UPDATE FOR AUTHOR'S NOTE- I'm sorry if this is short and horrible but this is the one that made the cut...trust me..the other ones were worse!  
**

Chapter 15

I had finally got the last of the fries down my throat, the scent making me feel sick. We've went to about three different places and was now heading to some gas station; I think it was called the DX. Our first stop was a drive-in movie theater which was still broadcasting it's movie to dozens of cars lined up in rows. There were many though, not paying attention to the movie at all, but their partner in the car instead. Then, we went to a painting studio which confused me. Usually when I watched movies or read books on Greasers; they were badasses who didn't give a damn and liked to fight. Soda had to explain to me that the painting studio used to be a greaser hangout; the Dingo.  
"Why'd they burn it down?" I asked curiously. Soda shrugged and grabbed back onto the steering wheel; backing out of the parking lot.

"I don't really know, no one does. We all suspect the Socs did it to tick us off."

We drove a little more before pulling into a gas station. "Here it is, the, well, now it's the Sunoco gas station, but I'll always remember it as the DX," Soda said bringing the car forward. It was closed but he got out anyway.  
"This is it?" I asked as I opened up the car door. The big lit up sign read Sunoco in big blue letters in a yellow diamond. "Why did Sunoco buy the DX?"

"They didn't really buy the company. They bought their gas and things like that, but they eventually owned it all," he sighed. "I was fired when the DX closed down. See over there, the area over there where all the broken down cars are? I used to have to stay over there in that area and work on cars, in fact, I was over there when your mother told me she was moving to Florida." We both were walking over and Soda moved a few garbage cans. "Here's where Tim Shepard graffitied on the wall when a couple of Socs stopped by here. Things were...difficult during us during those times, but I ain't gonna go into detail on that."  
"So what was it like? I mean, in my old school, we were all broken down into social classes. The jocks and cheerleaders were always bringing the other people down, like they owned the school."  
"It was worse," Soda said. "For us, I mean. Your uncle almost got killed for being a low class greaser."

"That's horrible," I stated. "And kind of stupid."

"Trust me Seth, there wasn't one person that thought this was cool; to be afraid to walk home, walk anywhere, but Socs weren't the only ones at fault, greasers just did it right back to them and it never solved anything. I think the only thing any of us thought was cool was our hair and attitudes; although, Dally favored the hood attitude more then having greasy hair..." He trailed off, almost into a memory before sighing and looking at me. "Him and Johnny; nobody'll forget 'em." We really sat in an awkward silence then and I stared out the window; looking through the windows of the gas station and just trying to in vision my father; Sodapop Curtis, as a teenager working here. I began to wonder what sort of topic of conversation to bring up...but it really wasn't working. I slumped down in my seat, noticing Soda turn the car back on and drive out and back onto the road. I glanced up at his face when he dragged his arm across his face. His eyes were wet.  
"Soda...are you okay?" He nodded.

"It's just...it's hard remembering these sorts of things. The gang, we all used to be one big family that came from a big list of troubles. My brothers and I had no parents, Johnny wished he didn't have parents and Dally's didn't care so it was like he had no parents at all...Steve.." he stopped short before taking a breath. "His father made his life bad; abusing the hell outta him and then paying him to call it even. We all had it bad and tried to pull together to make it through; but then Johnny had to go die and then it all went bad from there..then Dally...then Steve! It wasn't...my idea to go ahead and sign up for Nam'; Steve just wanted to go and come home a hero, so his father could see that he wasn't just some hood that lived in his home. Steve wanted to be a hero so he could have something to brag about..."  
"I get it," I told him. "You know, from what your telling me, Steve didn't die in vain. He fought for his country, but he also fought for himself. He is a hero." I could see a faint smile from the dim lights of the night.

Once we pulled into the driveway and got back into the house; Soda got some blankets and a pillow from the hall closet and I turned on the T.V.; ready to settle in for the night. Soda had already gone to bed and I couldn't blame him, I was tired myself! I skimmed through the TV channels and settled on just watching MTV until my eyes couldn't stay open. I don't really remember when exactly I fell asleep, but I know I didn't sleep long, because the next thing I knew, I heard a rapid banging on the door and the light was turned on; blaring my vision. Groaning, I put the pillow over my face and rested on my stomache  
"SODA!" I heard Uncle Pony exclaim. "Ally, us, it happened, we're gonna have a baby!" I looked up from the couch, adjusting my eyes to the light and noticed Soda rub his eyes, still half asleep.  
"Shouldn't you have known this nine months ago?"

"Sodapop, wake up! I'm telling you that Alley's water broke!" The realization of what he was saying must have hit the both of us at that moment. Soda quickly looked around for his jacket and shoes and then looked over at me. "Wait, Soda, Seth might have to stay; I'm bringing bad news too."  
"Bad news?" I asked as I got up from the couch.


	16. Chapter 16

"Check over there," I told the police directly. "I don't really know of places that Linda likes to go to so I'm taking this from what she told me."

"Did she mention wanting to maybe go back home, Mr. Colbury?" I sighed, thinking back to Uncle Ponyboy's birthday party and how mad she was at Uncle Darry...

_ "You know, you can't stay mad at him forever."  
"I'm not mad; I'm frustrated. There was a time when I could ask him for anything and he would say yes, it was like I had him wrapped around my finger. He's different now. I never experienced this sort of feeling against him before. I've been thinking all night about going back home, I really should have just waited until summer."_

Was it really possible that she could have went back home; was she that confused that night? I honestly felt bad, for her, Aunt Ally and Uncle Ponyboy. She was going to be having a baby sometime today and of course, I was with the police and Uncle Darry, looking for Linda who never returned home since the party a couple of hours ago. His hands were dug into his pockets; the veins emerging from under his skin.  
"She was mad at me," he told Two-Bit. "Just... help me find her; I don't know what I'm going to do if I don't...I can't go through this again. It was one thing when Ponyboy and Johnny ran away; they had each other...and they were safe, knew where they were going. Linda...she's probrably wandering around; she doesn't know Oklahoma as well as we do...and she's a girl; she can be taken advantage of easily. She's my daughter." He continued to worry to himself and Two-Bit tried to make him feel little better.  
"We'll find her, she'll be alright," he said over and over again.

One of the places I did check was the library and many people looked up from their library books with curious eyes as a bunch of police officers came to the front desk, asking the people there if they've seen Linda come there during the night. Many shook their heads and others just didn't care. It was ten-thirty in the morning and my eyes were beginning to sting from lack of sleep.  
"Seth; you can just go now if you'd like," Uncle Darry said coming toward me. "I'll drive you there."

"Nah..I'm happy to help," I told him. "I'm sorta worried about her; probrably more then I should be." His blue eyes searched mine and then he nodded, before a police officer came over and told us that we should go home and get some rest, seeing as how they'd been looking all night.  
"I'll drive you home then, Seth. Get some sleep."

"Okay." I could refuse him, neither could my pleading eyes that were begging for just five minutes of sleep. I followed him to his small four door car; I was too tired to find out what sort of car it was...all I cared about was the comfortable seats inside and how after I slept; I'd see my new cousin and then look for Linda, who obviously wanted to stay away. I really did wish that I knew where she was; it'd make me feel better to know if she's safe and had some sort of roof over her head. Uncle Ponyboy was right, Linda's disappearance was entirely bad news.

Uncle Darry opened up the door and I slid into the passenger side door; slipping my seat-belt on. The glass felt cold against my cheek; it was almost a comforting feeling. Once Uncle Darry began driving; he turned on the air conditioning which kept me from falling asleep.  
"Seth, I really have to thank you for trying to help us," he said from the abyss of the awkward silence. "If you can think of anything Linda said to you, anything that you might remember of her wanting to go somewhere; anywhere, just let me know."  
"Sure, sure," I said through the sticky sleepiness. "I'll call you and let you know."

"I don't know if you know this Seth, but you've truly been a great help to this family; my brother is happier, Linda liked having an extra friend to pal around with, even George is talking about you now."  
"Where is George anyway?" I asked out of curiosity.

"At the hospital...he's curious to know where babies come from. We didn't necessarily want to tell him the truth, so Two-Bit told him the partial truth." I raised my eye brows in interest, opening up my eyes.  
"Which is?"

"He told George that when Alley and Pony wanted a baby, Ponyboy gave her a seed and she swallowed it, and that seed turned into a baby. I have to say, it's a lot better then what most parents are telling their kids; about the stork and all." I laughed at Two-Bit's creativity as I noticed Soda's house coming into view. I groaned, not even wanting to move as Uncle Darry handed me a key.  
"You'll need this to get in," he told me. "I'll come here around three-thirty and we'll head over to the hospital. I nodded, griping the door handle and pulling it toward me to open it up. My fingers fumbled on the seatbelt, getting clasp off and standing outside the car. Once I slammed the door shut, I waved goodbye to him and headed inside, where Tristan looked up from his spot of the floor. A grunt came from his mouth before lowering his head down to the ground. This was very un-characteristic about him; he was always energetic. I walked over to him and patted his head; wondering what was wrong with him.

"You okay, Tristan?" I asked sitting down on the couch. His ears perked up slightly before lifting himself from the floor and next to me on the couch. He didn't mind when I lifted my feet; he just laid on top of them. I smiled as I stroked his head in a comforting way, so he knew I was there for him. I had finally dozed off until I heard the door opening.  
"Darry, relax. I'm just gonna wake him up and ask if he's awake enough to see Johnny."

"I'd just let him sleep, Soda. He was close to passing out in my car a couple of hours ago."

"I know, he must be tired. He went through a lot yesterday between Linda leaving and his mother eating out with Bryon Douglas...this must have been like a truck hitting him."

"Bryon? I thought he was gay?"

"He is Darry...they've always been friend though, or him and Jim have been; Seth mis-took it for Sandy having actual feelings for him."

"Oh." There was rummaging around then, before I heard Soda gasp and jump.

"No! Darry...Tristan! He's dead!" I felt him shaking Tristan but then I realized that there was no breathing movements from Tristan; none at all.  
He was dead. I could feel my stomache turning. I could hear Soda's voice cracking as he asked, "He was perfectly fine yesterday! How can he be dead now?" I decided to "wake up" then and rubbed my eyes. As I opened them, I looked at Tristan's head, which was still resting underneath my hand. I looked at Soda, who I think was trying to suck it in and be a man, and reached out for his hand.  
"I'm sorry, Soda," I told him. "He's in a good place now, right?" Nice Seth, trying to make him think of his dog dying a little bit more, right? You stupid idiot! Soda nodded silently as Uncle Darry got Tristan off of me and laid him down on the floor.  
"If you want, we can stop by that place where they cremate pets; unless you want to bury him." Soda sighed, his eyes tied onto his dead dog.

"Sure."

I was half more awake then I was before, especially because I was sitting in the backseat of a car with a dead Tristan. My eyes never left him and I couldn't help but think that I spent the last moments of his life with him and it could have been something better; a game of tug-o-war or fetch, but I spent it sleeping, how dumb was I? It was hard when Uncle Darry carried him into the office and dropped off the body.  
"They said we can pick up the urn when we get back," he told Soda who didn't say a word. I kind of had sympathy for him; he didn't live with a woman or have a love interest..and Tristan was like his best friend in dog form; who wouldn't be upset?  
"You know Soda..we can get another dog," I told him. "We really can, it might not feel the same for awhile but it might be a good idea."

"That'd be cool, I guess," he said dully. "For now, let's just focus on Johnny...you're gonna see him soon."

"Yep..I'm kind of excited," I admitted. I sat back in the seat and looked at the window, trying to picture what he looked like. I tried to envision a little boy that looked like Uncle Ponyboy and Aunt Ally both, but all I could see was a little boy with big brown eyes and dark hair, like the Johnny Cade I've seen in the newspapers when I was with Linda. That's when it hit me; what if Linda was visiting Johnny and Dallas' graves.  
"Hey Uncle Darry? Is the gravesites of Johnny and Dallas around here somewhere? I think I know where Linda is."


	17. Chapter 17

HELLO EVERYONE! I'm backkkk and ready to kick some ass o.o -cough; I mean, entertain you all with more of Seth's adventure in Oklahoma..yeah, those were the words I was searching for. Anyway, moving onto to all that good stuff.  
I wanna thank TheNighttimeSky for beta reading for me and looking over my work and correcting my flaws...plus she made everything sound better XD So BIG thumbs up to her, she's pretty spiffily (not even a word, idc) amazingg! 8D

Also, check my updates for important dates and junk; I do try to get on to update the updates section weekly, if not daily. So keep on the lookout for those :)...

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Uncle Darry's eyes lighten with interest and the look on his face that was once full of worry changed immediately. I was already fully aware that Aunt Ally was about to go into labor, but I knew that Linda was not only important to me, but even more important to Uncle Darry as well.

"Well, they're only about five minutes away..." His voice drifted into thought. "I just care about finding Linda and making sure she's alright. I...can't bear the thought of not finding her."

"We're gonna find her," I reassured him, patting my hand on his shoulder supportively. I knew Linda was hurt and angry at Uncle Darry, but there's a limit on what is considered going _too _far, and she surely passed those boundaries by doing something so reckless as running away like this. I admitted that she was acting stupid and childish and that, if anyone was going to talk some sense into her, it would be someone her own age. Someone like me.

I looked at Uncle Darry and let out a mental sigh, accepting the fact that it'd have to be up to me to go find her. "Let me go and find her. You go meet your nephew and support your brother."

"But...but I-" His voice trailed off as he stumbled, searching for the right words to say. Instead his attention averted to Soda coming out from the veterinarian's office, no trace of happiness on his face.

"Don't worry Uncle Darry, I'll make sure I persuade her to come back if I find her there," I persisted, still noting the anxious look on his face.

"And what are you going to do, walk to the hospital? Seth, you're not thinking logically. You have a head., Iit's not just something for you to grow hair on."

I didn't know what else to say to him when Soda got back into the car and silently buckled the seatbelt across his waist. He sighed and looked up at Darry with a pained look on his face.

I never fully understood the term, "uncomfortable silence could be so loud," until the conversation died and filled the car with absolute nothingness. Uncle Darry started the car and was beginning to turn onto the main road before he looked at Soda, then at me and pulled into another parking space.

"Seth, can you drive?" he asked curiously. I did get my driver's license in Florida a month or so ago, but not only do I hate driving it to begin with, I'm nervous as hell when it comes to being on the road. Hell, I'm surprised I even passed the road test with how many short stops and mistakes I made.

"Uh..yeah." I said, trying not to really sound unsure. "I'm licensed and everything." Darry nodded.

"Okay Seth, this is what I'm going to do. I am going to drive to the hospital so Soda can be there for Ally and Pony. We're going to go check and see is Linda is even there. If she is, then I'll wait in the car and let you talk her into coming back."

"Sounds good," I replied, sitting up in my seat before I slouched all the way to the ground. The car rumbled back to life and I watched out the window as we pulled back onto the road, heading toward the hospital. I noticed Soda's solemn reflection in the side view mirror and leaned forward to pat his shoulder. "Hey, it'll be okay. If anything, he's in a better place."

"Sure, I have the three of you but no one lives _with_ me. Ya'll will have to go back to Florida with Sandy sooner or later and you and Pony don't even live under the same roof. There's not going to be anyone waiting for me when I come home." I desperately wanted to tell him that there was no chance in hell that'd I'd ever go back to living in Florida and that'd I'd gladly live with him over Sandy any day but I couldn't bring myself to butt into their conversation and be the rebellious teenager.

"I hope so, Seth. It just feels like I lost my best friend, there's no way he could ever be replaced… I guess it'll be okay, I'll just need some time to adjust to him not being there." I didn't know what else to say so I dropped my arm and went back to slouching in my seat. I knew that telling him he was in a better place was the right thing to do, but I wasn't sure if I really believed it or not. Religion and God were never something that was instilled in my household or in my life, because I honestly just didn't care.

I _have_ thought about things like that… Where I would end up when I died and what would happen to me, but I didn't dwell on it much. What if what you spent your whole life believing is a lie; a big fat horrible lie? Then that means you spent your whole life believing in a big fantasy and could have been doing something else. Plus, if I didn't really believe in all that, then why tell someone else to believe in it themselves? I could remember when my mother used to try begging James into bringing all of us to church, stating that James took away everything she used to hope and believe in. However, he completely and totally tuned her out and went about his own business, which consisted in going to work and then out drinking with the guys. She used to have a bible kept in her end table drawer too, one that she would crack open every once in awhile, but as time went on I've seen her take it out less and less until she never took it out at all. Darry's voice broke me from my thoughts.

"Soda, you've never been alone. You've always had Pony and I, and always will." He looked back at me. "And you have Seth now...possibly Sandy too?" Soda sighed, looked down at his hands and cracked his knuckles.

We ended up dropping Soda off and then drove o the graveyard where Uncle Darry parked at the entrance. Silence crept into the car for a good two minutes, until I decided to crawl into the front seat and thought up something to say.

"What am I gonna say to her?" I asked, thinking about this since I told him I'd do it.

"I'm sure you'll think of something, you guys are chatterboxes around each other to begin with." His gaze went from me to out the windshield. "I wouldn't breing anything major up to begin with though."

I nodded and got out of the car; careful not to slam the door. One of my biggest habits was slamming doors to hard in which I constantly get yelled at for. Luckily, it didn't close all too hard so I didn't get lectured at.

I began walking on the pathway that looped around the church and through all the graves. I had that gut feeling in the pit of my stomach as I quickened my pace and looked around. I felt like I was being watched and followed by the graves, and just thinking about there being dead people 10 feet under the ground sent cold chills down my spine. I've always hated graveyards, mainly because I had been stupid with a couple of friends once and joined them in kicking down tombstones and smoking pot and doing who knows what else.

It was well past curfew when we got caught and I was hauled into the police station for disorderly conduct which, of course, had James reeling with anger. Luckily, they had let me go with just a warning, being that it was the first time I had really done anything stupid. James ended up kicking my ass though, and kept under lockdown for a week. So ever since then, I stayed away from graveyards. It probably would've been easier if I had known where Dally and Johnny were buried so I kept on walking. After awhile of looking around I was reading to give up, turn around and go back, but that idea was overturned when I heard my name.

"S..Seth?" I looked over to where Linda's blue eyes looked from behind one of the tombstones. I walked over to her as she stood up. My arms automatically wrapped around her as she sobbed into my chest. "I wanna go home!"

"Well you never had to leave," I told her, almost sternly like a parent would tell a teenager. "No one ever told that you had to leave."

"Please don't start with any of that; I'll be getting enough of it when I get home." Her blue eyes looked up into mine as her eyes practically begged me of this. "I just couldn't deal with all of it anymore. I could deal with Dad being so cold about all of this and..about going home."

I didn't think it would be necessary for us to sit on someone else's grave so I led her over to a bench nearby and let her rest her head on my shoulder. She absently picked at the fabric of her jacket as she pulled her knees close to her chest.

"I know how great it is to be here and all, but why do you not want to go back? Don't you miss your mom?" Her eyes grew dark with some sort of emotion I've never seen out of her before, even when she was pissed at Uncle Darry.

"No," she said flatly. "I love my mother but I could care less if I ever seen her again. I'm tired of her Seth. She hangs coming down here over my head as a threat. Then the next thing I know, she has a new guy come over and stay the night ever single week. She has such a hate for Dad that it's almost sickening. You don't know how badly I fought my way to getting here a week early, and it only happened because my mother almost took away my rights to come here for good. Dad doesn't have enough money as it is; he doesn't need to waste his money buying a plane ticket to come visit me."

"Oh wow," I responded, not really knowing what else to say without making her feel worse.

Really, I could see where she was coming from, but could also see the childish reasoning behind it. I wasn't going to argue with her, especially because I, of all people, wanted her to come home.

"You have to give your mother some slack though. She's probably really lonely and trying to get into the swing of dating again."

"It doesn't mean she should whore herself around either, Seth. Do you wanna know what I'm scared of?" It was then that she looked at me, tears glistening in her eyes. "I'm scared of ending up just like her."

"Who said you will? You could be different than her. Linda, I've only known you for about a week or so and yet, from the sounds of your mother, you two sound totally different in every way."

"Seth, I haven't told you everything." Her response barely came out in a whisper. "There was one man in particular that got my mother into some really bad stuff. First it was booze, then pot, now I just don't know. Dad took such good care of her when they were together, now she needs help taking care of herself, otherwise I don't know what will happen to her."

"Linda, why don't you tell your father? You could probably be taken out of there and you could live with him."

"Well, if I leave my mother then she might do something stupid. I just, I don't know. All I know is coming here is like my vacation. I don't have to look over George like I have to do here and I can be a kid here. Plus, I think It would break Daddy's heart if he heard about Mom sinking so far in her life. Please, don't tell him I said anything. I never told anybody any of this and, well, if word gets out I know who said it."

"I know. Now that you let me into your life story, let's get you back to your dad and then we'll figure out what we can do about your situation." She nodded and stood up, stretching before we started walking. Once we got to the car, Darry leapt out of his seat as Linda buried herself into his arms. I've never seen a grown man cry before, but Darry was in tears.

"Don't ever do that to me again, Linda," he said, looking at her. "I never want to lose my baby girl, _ever_." She nodded and I felt awkward looking in on their father-daughter moment. I crept into the backseat of their car and let them be alone before they got into the car, and soon everything was okay again.


End file.
